The Adventures of Urameshi Aiji
by Iron Dragon Maiden
Summary: Harry is Alyssa, in other words: a girl. Contains Yaoi and Yuri in later chapters. After being abandoned in Japan by the Dursleys, Alyssa becomes Aiji and Yusuke's sister. Now that the demon tournament is over, Hogwarts and old Voldy should be easy
1. Here comes Toushin!

A/N: This is my first fanfiction ever and it's a crossover to boot. Reviews and even flames are welcome, just tell me what's wrong that can be changed and I shall see what I can do. P.S. I'm also new to the entire having your own account thing; so if there are some technical erors, I'm sorry. I got the idea for this story along time ago;the entire Harry-is-a-girl-in-my-stroy is mostly due to his androginous personality in the early books (even in the last books he seems too 'neutral' as far as genders go). Or at least that's my opinion. And I always did wonder about him and Yusuke being siblings. So voila. P.P.S. I don't really trust spellcheck with the grammar part; so if my grammar ia faulty, just point it out and I'll do what I can to fix it, OK?

The sorting feast was as glamorous as any of the others in the past at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The decorations were impressive, very baroque; the night sky that was ever present in the Great Hall through a spell was as beautiful as it ever was; students occupied the four tables of their respective houses and the staff occupied their own table. Nervous, wet-behind-the-ears first years were awaiting for the moment that they would be sorted into their own House; which will, quite frankly, set their lifestyle at Hogwarts at a certain stereotype. Well, not completely.

Among the first years was a rather short girl with dark, emerald green hair; her eyes just a shade lighter of emerald green than her hair. The most distinguishing characteristic of this girl, other than her rather original hair and eye color, was a lightning bolt shaped scar right above her right eyebrow. Another thing that set this rather unusual young girl was how relaxed she looked compared to her peers. Her body language was composed, clearly stating that nothing can surprise, startle or scare her; unlike her soon-to-be-classmates that were feeling insecure as to what test they would have to go through to get sorted (in Ronald Weasley's case) or those that were afraid that they would not get sorted into the House that they wanted to get into/ their family wished for them to be in (in Draco Malfoy's case).

Who is this girl you ask? Who is the girl who is leaning against the nearest wall with her arms crossed and her lips set in an amused smirk? Who is the girl with the casual pose that seemed to differentiate herself from the others so soon in the school year? Why her name is Alyssa Jade Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived. But in demon and spiritual world she is known as Urameshi Aiji; sister of Urameshi Yuusuke, well known spirit detective and one hell of a powerful Toushin demon.

Still confused? What were you expecting? A female version of James Potter? A carbon copy of Lily Evans? Or maybe some of you were expecting a shy little girl with no knowledge of magic because of her magic-hating relatives? Well, to those that have asked the last question, she would have met that fate had her horrid relatives really taken her in.

10 years ago, Number Four Private Drive

It was a beautiful day in Little Winging Surrey: the sun was shining, the sky was an exquisite shade of blue that one could stand around all day and just look at it without getting bored. It is ironic how such an earth shattering decision can happen on a day such as this, but it has happened. On this very fine day, Albus Dumbledore's plan of Alyssa Potter living with her relatives literally went down the drain.

"VERNON!" a shriek with different pitches resounded throughout the house in Number 4 Private Drive. "Goodness, Petunia, what is it; you nearly woke up the neighbours!" responded the aforementioned Vernon, who quite frankly needed to see a doctor so that they could operate his stomach to make it smaller ASAP. You'd think that it was the husband who was pregnant instead of the wife considering how much of a fat pig the man was (no offence was meant to the poor pigs) and how much the wife, Petunia, resembled someone with anorexia. Their son, Dudley, was asleep in his very own nursery; surprisingly the babe was able to sleep through his mother's desperate cry but considering the fact that the woman was a drama-queen and a prima donna wannabe I'd say that he had better get used to it.

"Vernon come quick …the baby, my…freak of a sister…" and so we are able to see how the Petunia Dursley specie reacts to something: starts to babble and stammer to the point that she is incomprehensible while she wails for her husband to fix the problem for her like a spoiled brat.

"What is it, woman? What could be so-" Dursley was cut off by his wife as she shoved a piece of paper to his face. Beady eyes read the message that the ever crafty (but not enough in this case) Headmaster of Hogwarts had written. Soon Dursley paled and then started to turn into an interesting and not to mention ugly shade of purple/red. And now we shall conclude our Dursley observation class by seeing their prejudiced reactions towards their niece.

"Who do those freaks think they are that they can just drop one of their own on OUR doorstep! Petunia, hand me the child, I'll take her with me to Japan and leave her in an orphanage there. There won't be any connection between us if I can help it" was Vernon Dursley's reply as he took the baby girl and made his way to the car.

"But Vernon, not that I don't agree with your decision, but what do you think that those freaks are going to do to us once they find out that we didn't do what they wanted?" asked a horrified Mrs. Dursley. You ever notice that their vocabulary for 'insulting' witches and wizards is rather childish and somewhat repetitive? Oh well, must be from lack of education or, to be precise, lack of attention to said education.

"They can't do anything to us since we don't have to take her in, besides living in a different country that hopefully doesn't have any freaks will probably stamp the freakishness out of the girl so it's all for the best" anything else that Mrs. Dursley wanted to say was left untold because her husband just left to the airport with Alyssa.

1 day later (or 2, depending on your geographical point of vue)

Vernon didn't understand a word of Japanese, his guide and interpreter weren't to meet him until the meeting so he had to make do with what he had. Taking a taxi to the nearest hotel in Tokyo (while making a complete fool of himself by using sign language, or rather, his interpretation of sign language); Dursley pretty much ended up in the middle of nowhere in Tokyo. Without the linguistic capacity to make himself understood in the foreign city, he just dumped the infant in the nearest alley while (what he thought was) looking inconspicuous. Luckily for him, the current time in Tokyo was right when people where rushing to go to work (also known in the working world as Rush Hour) and said people could not be bothered by the actions of the weird foreigner.

Or at least the adults had that reaction. A young boy of six years had seen what the man had done, though he did not know that the man had dumped into the alley. Unknown to the dark green haired child, his curiosity will add another member to his family that he will treasure for the rest of his life. And most importantly, he will forever remember the comical face that his drunken mother had made and how she had miraculously sobered up when he said the words: "'Ka-san, can I keep her?"

Present Time at the Hogwarts Welcoming Feast

Alyssa's smirk turned into a wistful smile as she remembered all of the crazy yet fun things that she did in her life. From becoming the most feared student in her primary school both due to her brother's reputation and to her own street fights with some thugs two to three years younger than her brother, some of them older siblings of some of her frightened classmates. Yusuke getting run over a car to save some random kid's life and the utter agony that she had felt when she thought that her beloved brother, the one who really understood her and always supported her in every way, was gone for good. Beating Keiko in the race to 'kiss Yusuke back to life' by a minute (and thank goodness for that, sometimes Aiji has nightmares about what would happen had she failed to reach her brother in time). Getting suspicious about what Yusuke was doing when he received his first mission and almost suffering the same fate as Keiko by the Shadow Sword (who was saved but got her memories about the event erased while Aiji still remembered everything due to her pleas to at least know what is going to happen to her brother now that he has to fight demons as a profession).

Though Yusuke's intentions were to keep her, Keiko, their mother Atsuko and to some extent Kuwabara safe; Aiji had secretly followed him on his second mission to Genkai's temple. Suffice to say that Aiji is still shocked to this day that her paper had turned out red. Nearly getting killed due to blood loss (courtesy of Rando) and having Yusuke give her some of his blood to help her survive (which explains why she is a Toushin demon). Not to mention that from that point on she had become a permanent part of the Reikai Tantei team. From the Four Saint Beasts to the demon tournament she and Yusuke (as well as the rest of the team) were inseparable. This would actually be the first time that she was going to be independent of her brother or any of their friends (because his friends are her friends; like good siblings, they share).

To be honest, she only came to Hogwarts out of respect for her deceased parents; after all they probably had plans for her to go to Hogwarts, marry a nice wizard and take a wizard job while raising children. But since she is a half-assed worker when it comes to 'normal' work like her brother; she is just going to do the minimum and just go to the Wizarding School. To become an icon of justice and victory of the wizarding world? The same world that had abandoned her to her fate on the Dursley's doorstep? Hell no. Killing Voldemort and his cronies just because the mass of the Wizarding World wishes it? Are you kidding me?

As you can see, despite the fact that she had endured the demon tournament and, before that, suffered the same training as Yusuke that Raizen (or as they both call him now: father) had given them; she and her brother are still the same authority-hating rebels that they were before Yusuke's first death.

Yeah, killing the bastard to avenge her parents seemed like a good reason to Aiji; especially since, thanks to Hiei's Jagan, she had been able to see how her life as a baby with her parents had been. From the memories that she had, James and Lily Potter could have been really good parents. Sadly they never got the chance; and even if it sounds cruel to say it, Raizen and Atsuko were more Aiji's parents then they were due to how Atsuko is a constant in her life and how Raizen had helped her and Yusuke out before death had taken him. And even then, Raizen had left kicking and screaming like the stubborn demon lord that he was. Aiji still misses him, as does Yusuke, but life goes on and with their friends around it's hard to stay depressed all the time.

But the real reason that she's here that has anything to do with Voldemort is the simple fact that Reikai is a teensy bit miffed at the bastard (literally) for cheating death in a rather crude and unfair way; I mean, what kind of sick, snake-raping pedophile actually thinks that dividing your soul in seven pieces to attain semi-immortality is better than kicking bucket meekly and quietly like everyone else does? Voldemort or Tom Marvolo Riddle if we want to get technical; personally, Aiji is going to always call him that just to piss the wanker off and hope that due to the high blood pressure he will get by being enraged, Tommy-boy would die by popping many blood vessels in his head and die of blood loss because the strength of the vessel explosions will tear the skin on his head and cause him to lose blood.

"Children, it is time for you to be sorted", McGonagall; '_Professor_ McGonagall', Aiji (or Alyssa in this situation) reminded herself 'there's no need to piss her off so soon; especially now that I'm in a boarding school and can't just skip detentions as easily as I could've back home'; interrupted her trip down the memory lane. Oh well, I guess it's show time for Urameshi Aiji, I mean Alyssa Potter.

Seems that while Aiji was thinking; the sorting hat had done its annual song pre-sorting and everyone was either clapping (the veteran students by at least a year), sighing in relief (the first years that were fed some cockamamie tale of having to fight a Mountain Troll to be sorted like Ronald Weasley) or awaiting their destiny at Hogwarts.

"When I call your name, step into the stool and place the hat on to be sorted", then with a clear voice McGonagall began to read the humongous list of names. Aiji began to wonder if that poor woman was getting paid well for this; I mean come on, if this is what she has to do all night on the first day of school every year then it's no wonder she has a ten foot spiked pole up her ass.

"Potter, Alyssa", now at that Aiji had to frown. Really, she tells them that she doesn't want to use her English name and what do they do, they use said name. Stingy fuckers, they probably did the same thing to her request as they do with their paperwork: wipe their asses with it and then shove it where the sun doesn't shine. And of course who can forget the not-so discreet whispers about her as she walks to the stool. Placing the hat on her head, she waits for the long conversation (don't you just love telepathy?) that she knows she is going to have.

"_Well now isn't this interesting" said the sorting hat in Aiji's mind, "of all the things that I've seen in my career; I've never seen such a complex life, you're even making the Malfoy kid's life seem rather boring compared to yours" _

"_Was that a compliment?" responded an amused Aiji_

"_Coming from me? Yes. Do you know how boring it is to see the same scenario over and over again in thousands of first years' minds? Honestly, I was beginning to lose hope when I could already predict which house some children will go to just by hearing their bloody family name"_

"_Sad, ain't it? Well, the dried up old mummy is looking at me funny. I don't know how much power he has nor what his legal rights as the Headmaster of the school allow him to do; but I kind of want to keep this conversation private, thank you very much"_

"_As the Lady of Toranin wishes" at this Aiji had to hold back a snort "Even though Lord Enki is the King of the Makai, the lands of Toranin belong to you and your brother by blood alone"_

"_Blood doesn't mean anything" debated Aiji "Granted, I'll admit that we're both incredible fighters but we're not politicians like Otou-sama was. How he was able to be both at the same time is beyond me"_

"_Yet you were both wise and mature enough to admit it and do something fair about it; let me assure you that had anyone else been in the same situation as the both of you, they would have taken the power even if their actions meant the downfall of their country. That of itself speaks of both of your remarkable leadership skills"_

"_Alright, you win. Now let's get this sorting over with before the mummy grows even more wrinkles. And any information about me had better be kept under lock and key"_

"_Don't worry little Lady, your secrets are safe with me. Even Albus won't be able to get anything out of me"  
"Good, so where do I go?"  
"Considering your past, thuggish yet kind personality and how much you want to rebel against the Wizarding World for their abandonment; I'd say that Slytherin would be a good choice."_

"_You, I like. And the best part is that we get front row seats to funniest faces that everyone in the school are going to make"_

"_Indeed, do me a favor and spice things up in this boring old castle will you?"_

"_Do you even have to ask?"_

"SLYTHERIN!"

A/N: Should I continue? Or should I leave it?


	2. Boku wa Urameshi Aiji!

Here is the second chapter of _The adventures of Urameshi AijiAlyssa Potter._ Hope

Stone Silence. Those two words were the only ones needed to describe the Great Hall at the moment. No chatting, no talking, no teachers scolding, no yelling, NADA. Now this was not pleasant. Aiji did not spend the bulk of her summer mastering English for the residents to clam up at her presence. Though, considering the methods that Yusuke, Kurama, Atsuko, Keiko and Botan used to get her to learn it; well, there wasn't much to complain about. But it's the principle of it! I mean if the natives are going to clam up whenever she is around, then what was the point of learning English!

Despite Keiko's complaints; Yusuke and Atsuko were right, the only way for Aiji to learn something that she wasn't really interested in was to make it fun and practical. Considering the lack of time; Keiko had agreed, although she had come to regret her decision much later. You see Keiko and Kurama had already mastered English at school and Botan, being a Grim Reaper, automatically knew all the languages of the world. They had become her English teachers. Yusuke and Atsuko decided to keep Aiji company in her misery and just learned the language along with her. It had especially helped Yusuke in his English classes (his grades had drastically improved) and in pissing Iwamoto off since he couldn't even insult Yusuke's intelligence anymore. Heh, serves that ruler wanker right.

Anyway, since Aiji fell asleep every time Keiko started to drone on like the teachers in school; Kurama had intervened and suggested that they use another study method. So Aiji's first words in English were curse words straight out of the dictionary. At least this explains why Aiji, Yusuke and Atsuko have such dirty mouths

Of course, this also was a good beginning "course" since if Kurama had taught… well, while he was a good teacher, Yusuke wouldn't have learned anything. He'd be too busy checking everyone's favorite fox boy out. Aiji and Atsuko would just watch the show and bet on how long it would take for Yusuke to confess.

Yup, Yusuke is in love with Kurama. That doesn't mean that him and Keiko aren't friends or had a nasty break up. Quite the contrary, it was an anti-climatic break up. A month after Yusuke and Aiji came back from the Makai, Yusuke and Keiko had realized that romantically they didn't match. After one more week of discussing where their relationship was going they had agreed that while they made the best of friends, they were just not compatible in an amorous relationship. Aiji had accepted the break up with ease since she had never been able to picture Keiko-nee-chan as Keiko-sister-in-law. Atsuko had accepted it easily as well. Now Keiko was the unofficial "anue" (Big Sister) of the Urameshi family.

One good thing about having family and friends like hers is that, should anything happen, Reikai can send them here as reinforcements. Although, who is to say that Hiei won't pop up to inform her as to how Yusuke and Kurama's non-existent love life was going. Apparently the "fox has been moping and sulking to the point that he's aggravating me" so Hiei decided to help him out. Like Aiji has been trying to get Yusuke to declare his love for the silver kitsune. Note the key word "trying".

The crowd has finally woken up from their stupor. Good thing too because now that Aiji was sitting down at her "House Table", she had begun to reminisce, again. 'Damn, maybe I should've gone to a Japanese Wizarding School. If there's one in the UK then there should be one back home. At least there I wouldn't get too homesick.'

A few seconds later, the Slytherin House had begun to clap for her. Albus Dumbledore had a calculating look on his face and he looked disappointed. 'Got to watch out for that one. Bet you all my life savings that he purposefully wanted me with the Dursleys just so that I could be his weapon'. A tall, oily man was looking at her with…shock? 'And it figures that even the creepies were expecting a Potter Clone'

McGonagall had regained her bearings and continued on with the sorting. Aiji got bored and wondered when the food was going to arrive. Sure, she technically knew that the food will appear as soon as the sorting is done (Keiko and Kurama had forced her to read all her textbooks and some other reference books to the Wizarding World. "That way you know what to expect and what to avoid doing" were Kurama's exact words) but she still thought that eating before the sorting would've been a better decision. For Inari's sake! Some people had to suffer plane food before boarding the train!

Aiji was, once again, broken out of her thoughts as "Zabini, Blaise" joined them. The sorting was over 'Thank Tsukiyomi! Now we can finally eat'. But no, first the Headmaster had to make some sort of speech before any bellies can be satisfied. 'Fuck it all! Can't these people stop being such tight-asses and just FEED the hungry students already!' Honestly, first the entire "mystery House test" and now this! Aiji was willing to bet that the teachers only did this just to watch the first years' squirm.

Aiji was so focused on her inner tirade that she had missed the Headmaster's words, but she was broken out of it when the food appeared before her. And like any good Urameshi, she did not let the delicious food go to waste.

"You really love the food here, don't you?" an amused soprano voice asked her. Aiji took her attention away from her food to look at the one that had spoken to her. A very pretty girl with long mahogany hair in an elegant braided half pony-tail, deep blue eyes and very expensive looking robes had been the first of her peers to speak to Alyssa. 'So I'm stuck with the rich kids, huh?' It's kind of hard not to notice the fact that Alyssa stood out from the rest. They were all wearing expensive looking robes while Aiji chose to stick with the triple C's: casual, cheep and comfortable.

"You could say that again! Whoever the cook is I like him!" exclaimed a very full Aiji. A full Aiji meant a happy Aiji and a happy Aiji meant that she wasn't going to start acting like a smartass like usual. The other girl giggled, "I noticed, although if this is how you eat everyday I don't see how you can keep such a slim figure". At this Aiji nearly snorted in amusement "I have a fast metabolism and even without that I'm fine since I exercise everyday. And I'm not slim, I'm muscular" at that Aiji let out a playful growl. Hey, if she was going to spend nine months with these people might as well get to know them in at least a neutral way.

"Sorry, can't tell with those bulky robes hiding you" the girl joked back, "but you're lucky, I have a slow metabolism and I don't really exercise that much so I have to watch myself". Aiji was stunned. She was expecting some kind of stuck up response. From what she read in her reference book on Wizarding Society; purebloods were pretty much a bunch of social-elites/aristocrats that thought that they were the best just because of their "pure blood". Oh, and the majority (if not all) of these people went to Slytherin. At least that was what the book said. 'Hah, now Keiko can't say that the books always have the answers' thought Aiji in glee at the thought of being right.

"You look fine, besides even if you do gain a couple of pounds it's not going to kill you" responded a very interested Alyssa. If this is how the residents of the Slytherin House are like then the books are way off track. "And this is a little more then what I eat each day since I just came from both a plane trip from Japan and then I had to take the Hogwarts Express. After both of those trips, I'm starving" to emphasize, Aiji kept on pilling more food to her no-longer-barren plate. The pretty girl seemed to sympathize with her before she looked aghast at something "Oh, where are my manners! I didn't even introduce myself!" at that, the brown haired girl extended her hand "My name is Sally-Anne Perks, pleased to make your acquaintance". Aiji took Sally-Anne's hand and slightly bowed her head "Atashi wa Urameshi Aiji" then she remembered that she was in the UK and promptly smacked her head with her free hand, "Sorry, forgot, English not Japanese. I meant, my name is Urameshi Aiji, no wait, I mean Aiji Urameshi. Got to remember that the first name comes first" she said sheepishly.

Sally-Anne looked very interested. "Have you lived in Japan for your entire life? Impressive, your English is excellent. I can hardly tell that you have an accent." For some odd reason Aiji shivered "Considering that my teachers were Battle Axe Keiko-nee-chan and Iron Fist Kurama-nii-chan, that isn't something to be surprised about. The beginning was nice since they made it fun. But since we only had a month, hoo boy, did they ever go hard on me. Besides, Botan-nee-chan spoke to me in English everyday so it wasn't that bad. Though, learning that translating spell was pretty much a must to read the textbooks; otherwise I would've never finished reading them in time. Amataresu-sama, who knew that reading something in romanji could be so different than reading something in hiragana, katakana or even kanji! I already have enough trouble reading something in kanji, there is no need to make it even more complicated."

For her part, Sally-Anne wore a very sympathetic expression on her face "Sounds like your summer was spent doing nothing but schoolwork. Poor you, I don't think that I would've been able to survive learning a completely different language in only one month! Although, just out of curiosity. Why did you introduce yourself as Aiji Urameshi instead as Alyssa Potter?" That was an easy question for Aiji "Because that's the name that I always went by and the only one I knew. 'Ka-san and 'nii-chan" seeing Sally-Anne's confused gaze "sorry, I mean mom and bro had found me when I was a baby and just named me Aiji. And before you ask, no they did not know that I was Alyssa Potter. Hell, I didn't know that was my real name until Hagrid came unexpectedly to give me my letter. It's only a name anyway, might as well stick to the one I'm more comfortable with, ne?"

Whatever Sally-Anne was about to say was interrupted by a rather small blond boy. Well, small compared to the huge boys flanking him at each side. "So the famous Alyssa Potter has decided to grace us with her presence" the boy sneered, "what's the matter? Is Japan not good enough for the Girl-Who-Lived?"

'Well, someone woke up from the wrong side of the train chair' a small tic appeared in Aiji's right eyebrow, 'but, unfortunately for him, delicious food alone is not going to keep the fact that I woke up on the wrong side of the plane and train chair'. Now, Aiji had slightly changed from a very violent girl to a violent girl. In other words, she no longer beats people up just because of the little things. She beats them up because they have angered her. That is on the normal days. However, considering the fact that she went through a long plane ride and a slightly shorter train ride… well, good luck to the poor fool that pissed her off.

But then again, Raizen and Genkai are nothing short of miracle workers. Somehow, someway, they had managed to teach Yusuke and Aiji the finer points of self control. Too bad that even that won't save Blondie from a tongue lashing.

"The name's Urameshi, Blondie. If you're going to eavesdrop, do it right. From how you carry yourself I'd say that you come from one of those rich pureblood families. Didn't your parents teach you that it's common courtesy to give your own name first in an introduction?" Aiji couldn't resist jabbing at him for his rude manners, especially since she knew that it would rile Blondie up. True to form, his face turned red. Whether from anger or embarrassment, Aiji didn't know nor did she give a flying fuck.

"For an orphan you seem to know much about manners-" at this Aiji had to interrupt "Like I said; if you're going to eavesdrop, do it right. Since you already know about me coming from Japan, then you must already know that I have a brother and a mother. The definition of orphan is a kid with no mother, father or any kind of paternal figure, dumbass. You have to be retarded not to put two and two together. Guess that money can buy anything, even sending a retarded kid to a normal school"

Draco Malfoy was not expecting this. Seems that Potter is denying her own roots and what kind of speech patterns were these? She sounded like a vulgar commoner. Sighing internally he decided to at least introduce himself instead of being called Blondie for the rest of the school year. Besides, if she knows his name she might learn her place. "My name is Malfoy, Draco Malfoy" Aiji just had to snort, this was just too amusing. Draco did not see what was so funny and thought that she was making fun of his name. "Think my name is funny don't you? Well-" "Not the name, just how you said it, James Bond", well that was unexpected, "Who?" Aiji just sighed exasperated, "Nevermind."

Sally-Anne was beginning to get nervous; though all that she wanted to do right now was to hex Malfoy to the point that he can't even remember his own name for being a prat (and she could do it too) but that would be "un-lady like". Not that Sally-Anne cared about that but her family's greatest secret was at stake here! Even though the Perks were a neutral family, it would not be wise to be on the Malfoys' shit list.

"Draco, don't you think that this is a bit childish? You two are making a scene" and sure enough, the majority of Hogwarts' population was staring at the Malfoy-Potter (Urameshi) discussion.

Draco didn't know what to feel; on the one hand Potter knew how to defend herself (at least verbally), on the other she had clearly insulted him by making him look like an idiot. So he opted to just lay a threat, show her that he was the boss of the Slytherin House. "You had better learn some manners, Potter. Or else you will end up in the same sticky end as your parents". There that should do it.

Aiji, however, wasn't one to just sit idly while someone threatened her. So much for keeping things peaceful. "Last I checked, father died of a disease he had no control of and when he was alive, he took shit like yours from no one. Believe me when I say that the last unfortunate soul that talked to him like that couldn't move for a month at the very least. As for mom, she may not be as tough as dad was. But trust me, if it had been her in my place, you would have this fork shoved right where the sun doesn't shine." To emphasize her earlier threat; Aiji began twirling the fork in her hand, almost like it was a throwing knife. Sure, some things about her dad had to be altered but it's not like she could say that her dad was a demon lord.

Once again, the Great Hall was silent. Who knew that the Girl-Who-Lived could be so tough? And who were these people that she had just described? Didn't Lily and James Potter die at the Dark Lord's hand?

The first one that regained his composure was Severus Snape. He may have been shocked at the Potter girl's unexpected attitude; but that didn't stop him from analyzing the situation. Years of working for both the Dark Lord and Dumbledore will do that to you. From the description of her "parents" it doesn't seem all that surprising that Potter had that "tough girl" attitude. However, what shocked Severus the most was the fact that she interpreted the word "parents" to her adoptive parents instead of her biological ones. Granted, the only thing he knew about the girl was what little information she had given to the Perks girl.

There was only one way to tell if this was truly Potter's offspring, and he meant it in spirit not genetically. Tomorrow in the first years' Slytherin and Gryffindor Potions class, Severus was going to see just what exactly made Alyssa Potter tick.

Sally-Anne was very much shocked but at the same time envious. How she wished that she could do that to Malfoy or anyone else that acts like him! If it weren't for the fact that she was a half-blood because her mother is a French muggleborn witch from Beauxbatons she wouldn't have to be so secretive! The only good thing about her Clan was that they didn't care what happened to the different families within the Clan. Unless if they committed an illegal act that could land someone in Azkaban or if they got married with a muggle/muggleborn or half-blood. They were all for purity of blood but they did not agree with some of the methods that You-Know-Who used. And they were not stupid enough to take a side that had even the minuscule chance of losing. Better to be safe than sorry. That was the Perks' family motto. So, in order for Sally-Anne and her father to avoid being disowned and lose all their money; they had to play the part of the perfect purebloods. Sally-Anne's mom had her own home in France that was Sally-Anne's second home. Especially since her years before Hogwarts were spent going on a French muggle elementary school. Good thing that the rest of the Clan couldn't be bothered with the rest of the family. Otherwise it would have been quite clear that Sally-Anne wasn't the perfect pureblood daughter. Although, they did buy that cockamamie lie about how her father had met her mother on vacation in France. She was from a poor but pureblood family and since they were young twenty-something year olds; they had copulated and accidentally conceived. Sebastian, Sally-Anne's father, being the gentleman that he was brought up to be had married Sally-Anne's mother. Coincidentally her mother had died at child-birth.

Draco Malfoy was very confused and angry. First of all, wasn't this girl supposed to be the personification of good? Wasn't she supposed to be a push-over? She wasn't supposed to answer his threat with one of her own. The worst part was that she looked serious about it too. It was time to bring out the emergency plan of intimidation, because right now he was seriously regretting starting something with Potter. "We shall see, Potter. Let us see how well you shall manage against Crabbe and Goyle should you decide to put your idle threat in place." At his words, Crabbe and Goyle began to crack their knuckles in an act of terrorization.

Aiji didn't even bat an eyelash; she merely smirked at the "rich bitch" as she has started to internally call him. "Why not? I need new punching bags anyway. And just to let you know; back at home I used to beet up kids that were two to three years older then myself. There's a reason as to why no one messed with me in Tokyo."

Hello Stone Silence; we seem to be meeting you very often in Hogwarts' Great Hall.

For once in his entire lifetime Draco Malfoy did not know what to do or how to respond. In fact, Crabbe and Goyle seemed to be nervous. Now these two, along with Millicent Bulstrode, were trained to be the "bodyguards" of certain heirs of certain families. Millicent was the "bodyguard" and intimidation weapon for Pansy Parkinson. Crabbe and Goyle were, as you guessed it, the "bodyguards" and intimidation factors for Draco Malfoy. Now these three would be the first to admit that they were not the brightest crayons in the box. However, seeing how brawns and intimidation were their forte, they were also capable of gauging their own chances at pounding the person that had infuriated their respective charges. While Vincent and Gregory had problems telling how strong a girl could be, Millicent did not have that handicap. Judging by the nonchalant yet confident air about her; there was no doubt that she was telling the truth about her fights with older kids. Though her robe hid her body; her corporal language and the way that she moved convinced them that Alyssa Potter was not one to mess with. At least in a physical fight.

Draco, seeing Vince and Greg's worried stares, decided to just drop the fight since it was obvious that Potter could very easily hold her own in a verbal and physical fight. He may be proud, but he wasn't stupid. He got into Slytherin, the House of the sly and the ambitious, for a reason. It was clear that if he pursued this little battle he would lose (not that he hadn't already lost. It was just his pride telling him that it was a draw since the teachers were there). If even Vince and Greg looked nervous about fighting this girl then it was obvious that in this area Draco had met his match. However, that didn't mean that Potter would be quite as skilled in magic as she is in verbal and physical bouts.

The students and teachers at the Great Hall that day saw something they had never seen before: Draco Malfoy retreated from his little "discussion" with Alyssa Potter and just sat down away from her.

This time, it was Headmaster Albus Dumbledore that recovered first from his shock. He began making his usual speech about welcoming the veteran students back and introducing the no-nos to the first years. Aiji tuned him out until he said that those who entered the third corridor suffer a painful death. She filled the information for later. Koenma had also warned her that the dried up old mummy was also a master at manipulation. He was not a bad man; he was just too manipulative for his own good. Might as well investigate it when they least expected it and report back to Koenma and the rest.

"First years, follow us!" cried a six foot tall boy and an auburn haired girl; both of them had a silver "P" badge each on their robes. 'Prefects' Aiji reminded herself as she followed the rest to the …DUNGEONS!

She turned to Sally-Anne "Ne, Sally-chan; why are we going to the dungeons? It didn't say that the students had to sleep in the dungeons in _Hogwarts, a History_"

Sally-Anne had to laugh at that, "No, the students in general don't have to sleep in the dungeons. Just the Slytherins since it is close to where our Head of House's chambers are. The Gryffindors sleep in their own Tower in the North Wing, the Ranvenclaws sleep near the library (no surprise there) which is in the East Wing and the Hufflepuffs sleep somewhere in the West Wing."

"Let me guess, we sleep in the South Wing." Aiji voice was a mix between sardonic and amused "If we were in Asia; just by following the directions of our sleeping quarters, each house would be named differently. The Hufflepuffs would be the House of Byakko; the Ranvenclaws would be the House of Seiryuu; the Gryffindors, the House of Genbu; and, lastly, Slytherin would be the House of Suzaku." Now that last one was ironic, especially going by the choice of animals.

"I beg your pardon? I'm afraid you lost me…Aiji" after all, Aiji had called her by her given name. It would only be polite to call her by the given name that she likes being called.

Aiji beamed at her, 'Finally, someone in this damned country is actually calling me Aiji' then she answered Sally-Anne's question "It's an old Chinese legend that we are taught in elementary school. Apparently when China was divided, there were four gods that protected their own territory. The North belonged to Genbu, the earth turtle; the West, to Byakko the white tiger; the East belonged to Seiryuu the ice dragon; and the South belonged to Suzaku the phoenix." That was one of the few times that she had paid attention in class. She found it ironic that demons like the Four Saint Beast had once been mistaken for gods by humans.

Apparently, the irony on the choice of animals was not lost on Sally-Anne either. "The phoenix replacing the snake? Don't let our Head of House hear you say that otherwise he will end up having an ulcer" giggled Sally-Anne. 'Maybe it won't be so bad at Hogwarts. Sure, I still have to pretend that I'm the perfect pureblood but I guess that with Aiji around here I won't be bored'.

A couple of minutes later, the Slytherins found themselves in front of a painting of a huge black snake. "A mega-sized Black Mamba" murmured Aiji.

"How is it that you know what kind of snake it is?" asked Sally-Anne.

"Saw the movies "Kill Bill 1 and 2". They had a snake like that one kill one of the characters" shrugged Aiji. So what if her sources of knowledge were a little unorthodox? Variety was good.

Sally-Anne looked confused for a moment, and then she shrugged. They do say that the most powerful witches and wizards were the most eccentric ones. Just look at Dumbledore and his …twitch …fashion sense.

"Passssssword?" hissed the Black Mamba. "Rise of the Dark" answered the auburn haired girl. The painting moved to allow the Slytherins inside the passageway.

'Well, I've got to hand it to old Hebi-jii-san; he certainly had good taste in housing. Though the location part is debatable'. Indeed the Slytherin common room was a sight to behold with its leather chairs, warm green fire and spacey tables.

"First years girls' sleeping chambers are to your left side. The boys to your right side" spoke the auburn haired prefect.

"Girls may enter the boys chambers; however, the boys are not allowed to do the same" continued her male counterpart.

"How come?" Aiji couldn't help but ask. 'Is it me or are there more sexists here then I thought?'

The male prefect just shrugged "Something about hormones and boys not being able to control themselves."

"Don't you think that we're a little too young for the R-rated thoughts and for the guys to get it up?" at Aiji's words, the majority of the students began to blush in embarrassment. 'Prudes'

"Right, so… all of you get inside your dorms. We start classes at 8 o'clock tomorrow morning. You will get your schedules at breakfast. As to which bed is whose, the rules are simple: First come, first serve." Said the female prefect; her blush leaving her face as she finished reciting the same speech each prefect gives to the first years. Her male counterpart, however, was trying to hold his laughter at Aiji's comment.

Aiji had to lead a red-faced Sally-Anne to the girls' dorm. 'Jeez, you make a slight hentai comment and they're too embarrassed to move. What tight asses. Even Keiko-nee-chan was never this bad. She'd just hit me over the head.'

"Ne, bishoujo-chan, any idea as to which bed we should get?" that woke Sally-Anne up. She had never expected that she'd be one of the first in the dorm. She figured that since Pansy Parkinson and her bodyguard would go first (and get the best beds); she would have to fight Daphne Greengrass, Morag McDougal, Stacie Davis and Lythiel Moon for the second best beds.

"Let's go to the ones near the window; since we're in the dungeons they have put a heating charm on the dorms. Since its power base is near the window, we get more warmth. And we can also send our mail directly from our dorms." As Sally-Anne finished speaking, both girls had reached the beds near the window.

"So where is our stuff? It said in _Hogwarts, a History_ that the house elves would have our luggage-" Sally-Anne and Aiji's trunks appeared in front of their beds "nevermind"

Just then, the rest of the Slytherin first year girls had rushed inside the dorms. The first ones were Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bulstrode. When the small pug-faced girl had seen that the best beds were taken by Potter and Perks, she was ready to see red. You see, a funny thing about the Hogwarts dorms was that once you choose (or you are forced to accept) where you sleep; you will sleep in the same spot for the rest of your stay at Hogwarts. That was another reason why the Crabbes, the Goyles and the Bulstrodes went to the same schools as the Malfoys and Parkinsons. The Malfoys and Parkinsons deserved nothing but the best, including the best bedding.

Just as Pansy was going to make a move toward the two "intruders", Millicent grabbed her arm to stop her. A body guard isn't just someone that protects their principle; they also defend their charge's honor or keep it intact. It doesn't necessarily mean that they have to beat up every single person that offends them (though they are allowed to do that) but they also have to keep their charges from doing something that will taint their honor. Like getting drunk in public; or making a complete ass out of themselves in front of really important people that could really scorn their charge's reputation for a long time. Millicent had been taught all of this since she was a toddler and she had been Pansy's friend for as long as she could remember. Like Hell was she going to make the same mistake as Vince and Greg and let Pansy humiliate herself in front of the first year Slytherin girls. Millicent knew that should she ever get in fight with Potter; the chances of winning were slim. Thus, Pansy would no longer have her as a scare factor for the others. Therefore, she would not be able to do half of what she wants to do because she can't intimidate the other students into keeping their mouths shut.

No, it would be better not to antagonize Potter. Especially since this one was a wild card. Even if Potter is physically weaker than Millicent, that doesn't mean that she can't win by fighting dirty. Millicent internally laughed at her thoughts; here they had come to Hogwarts expecting goody-two-shoes Gryffindor Alyssa Potter and instead they got a Japanese Slytherin Alyssa Potter (or Aiji Urameshi) with a bad-ass attitude and apparently strong fists to back her up. And from the looks of things, she comes from a tough-as-nails family.

Aiji was surprised that some of these kids had their own bodyguards who were the same age as them. It wasn't that hard to tell, especially since Hokushin had been Yusuke and her bodyguard as well as trainer when they first came to Toranin. Even after Raizen had died, Hokushin had still kept his post as their guardian. In fact, Hokushin would've stopped them if he had known what they were planning about the demon tournament. However, he also knew that they were just kids; while Raizen, Mukuro and Yomi were at least seven millenniums old. That and they didn't really make asses out of themselves in front of Yomi, so it was all good. Hokushin was just a teensy-bit too protective of the Toranin heirs and their privileges.

Pansy and Millicent had to accept the fact that they ended up with second best. The rest of the girls chose their own spots and began to change for bed.

As Aiji closed her eyes inside her warm, comfy bed; her last thoughts were 'Tomorrow is going to be a looooong and interesting day'

* * *

Translations:

hentai: pervert

bishoujo: pretty girl (and Sally-Anne's new nickname)

Makai: Demon World

Toranin: one third of the Makai, this part belongs to Raizen. Gandara is Yomi's territory and Alaric is Mukuro's.

Hebi-jii-san: Old Man Snake. "Hebi" means "Snake". She is refering to Salazar Slytherin (it's her nickname for him). She has nicknames for the other Founders as well: Shishi-jii-san (Old Man Lion) for Godric Gryffindor, Tori-baa-san (Old Lady Bird) for Rowena Ravenclaw and Tanuki-baa-san for elga Hufflepuff.

baba: old hag


	3. Allies, rivals and the spy cat

This is a transition chapter. I'm just going to introduce the new characters in this one and then the story will (hopefully) develop a faster pace. Note that Sally-Anne, Daphne and Lythiel are NOT Mary-Sues. Neither is Aiji/Alyssa. I fucking hate Mary-Sues. Although, if any of you feel thatI am making any of my characters into one; feel free to point it out to me and I'll fix to the best of my abilities. Sally-Anne, Daphne and Lythiel are going to be Aiji's friends because a) Aiji needs to have friends inside her own House otherwise very bad things will happen in there; b) the three of them know the unspoken rules of Slytherin and of the pureblood families, so they're going to be her teachers in how to behave around people like the Malfoys (or at least avoid pissing them off) c) they are girls that live in a semi-Vistorian society that believes that women are weak (the purebloods, that is), Aiji is going to do some forceful changes in their personalities.

Note I am NOT bashing Draco Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson, or Ronald Weasley. Ron's worldis Black and White. He can't accept the fact that the saviorof the Wiarding World is a Slytherin fo now. It's just who he is.That's going to cange later. I am just portraying how he is at the beginning. Draco and Pansy want to havecomplete control of their year as the Prince and Princess of Slytherin. Again, this is justwho they are. Aiji can't stand any kind of authority and Draco and Pansy can't stand the fact that she won't bow down to anyone. So we have three stubborn fighting for control. So tensions are going to be a little high between the Draco/Pansy and Aiji ends.

Hope this chapter is satisfactory.

* * *

Aiji's hands were a blur as she practically punched Pansy Parkinson, Millicent Bulstrode and the bucket full of water that the two girls intended to use on her and Sally-Anne. Genkai and Raizen's training had forced her to be aware as to who were her "enemies" even while unconscious. Now, being splashed by cold water as a wake up call is not considered "dangerous" (more like "irritating" or "infuriating"); but, considering the fact that Aiji had lived in the Makai for two years, anything with even the smallest harmful intent is considered to be "enemy attacking" by Aiji's instincts. And since Aiji was still out of it from her jet-lag and train-lag, she had no control of her instinctual counter-attack. Thus, Pansy and Millicent ended up crashing into a wall (that fortunately didn't have any beds); while losing consciousness due to the force behind Aiji's reflex punches.DidI forget to mention that theygot soaked by the water they had planned on drenching Aiji and Sally-Anne with? 

All of this happened at 6 o' clock. The only beings awake before the "attack" were Morag McDougal and Stacie Davis. And these two were early risers by nature. When they saw what Pansy and her bodyguard were about to do, they did not know how to react. While the McDougal Clan and the Davis Clan were nothing to scoff at; the Parkinson Clan easily outranked them in terms of influence and money. In other words; it would not be wise to get on Parkinson's bad side so early in the game and have their families placed on the Parkinson shit list. So they didn't say anything and just watched as the "attack" took place.

The results were very shocking to the Slytherin girls. They had expected some sort of retaliation from Potter since their observations of the girl proved to lean on that direction. However, they did not expect her to retaliate while she was asleep! In fact, they did not anticipate the girl's Herculean strength (sure, they suspected that she was strong due to her daring Malfoy to sic Crabbe and Goyle at her. But not this strong!). Nor could they have guessed that she could, indeed, have a physical brawl with the Slytherin "bodyguards" and win.

Another thing that that small "event" caused was to awaken Daphne Greengrass and Lythiel Moon from their slumber. Sally-Anne was slightly beginning to awaken; but then changed her mind and went back to sleep. Aiji stopped punching and cursing her "enemies" in Japanese and remained asleep. Jet-lag and train-lag are evil things, aren't they? Especially when you have to wake up early in the morning.

Lythiel Moon's family has always been on good terms with Sally-Anne's. Both girls had grown attached to each other but were only considered as "friendly acquaintances" because the only times that they saw each other were at the parties that their families had. Because of this, the two girls were not able to pursue a real friendship pre-Hogwarts. In fact, Sally-Anne had the same relationship with Daphne as well. In fact, the closest amicable relationships that she had pre-Hogwarts were with Lythiel Moon and Daphne Greengrass. And they were only friendly acquaintances. This was the downside of living a double life; while she got the best of both worlds, she couldn't make friends with her "pureblood" peers as she could've if she had only one. It was a little disheartening to see Lythiel and Daphne become the best of friends; while she surreptitiously went to a muggle school and was kept on her toes to keep her family secret safe.

And those two girls were the ones that she got along the most with. Pansy Parkinson acted too much like a snob and her bodyguard easily intimidated Sally-Anne. While Pansy could be a marvelous person to her friends; her mother actively supported You-Know-Who and despised muggles, muggleborns and half-bloods. Sally-Anne knew that it wasn't fair to compare Pansy to her mother but she couldn't take the risk of being exposed. Sometimes, Sally-Anne hated having secrets; especially when she looks at her peers having a good time with their friends. Morag is something of an anti-social intellectual who prefers to read in her room rather than party. Stacie is somewhat of a follower; unlike her brother, Ravenclaw Roger Davis, who is considered one of the most popular boys at Hogwarts. That is not to say that Stacie is a bad person; she just happens to look out for herself and would rather avoid getting hurt by going with the flow.

Then, there were the boys. Draco Malfoy, same as Pansy. Only that his father was once the right hand man of You-Know-Who. Hello caution, how nice to see you. His bodyguards? Same as Millicent. Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott are OK; only that when they were kids they liked to make fun of her because she was on the sensitive side. Not exactly a good base of a childhood friendship, especially since Sally-Anne can hold a grudge for a long time. Comes with years of keeping your Clan in the dark about your heritage. Sorry, there is no "money back guaranteed".

Lythiel decided that now would be a good time to pursue a friendly relationship with Sally-Anne. She had always liked her; but sadly they never had the chance to become real friends like she and Daphne were because Sally-Anne was always too busy.

Sharing a look with her best friend; Lythiel and Daphne started shaking Sally-Anne in hopes of waking her up. They didn't dare to attempt the same thing with Alyssa Potter; especially considering her reaction to Millicent and Pansy's failed prank (Stacie and Morag had told them what happened), not that they blamed her. It's just that both girls would rather not end up in the same predicament as their house mates.

After a few strong shakes, Sally-Anne woke up with a glare on her naturally pale face. She was not a morning person, not at all. Then, she looked at the time and noticed that it was 6:03 and figured that it would be best for her to wake up now. She takes the longest showers ever so it would be best to take one now and be refreshed for the rest of the day.

"Thanks for waking me up, Lythiel, Daphne" she said with a smile. Maybe now they can actually become friends without Sally-Anne being so "busy". "How did you know that I like to take my time in the shower?"

Daphne laughed "We didn't. We just figured that you would want to shower before Pansy Parkinson and Millicent Bulstrode did"

Sally-Anne nodded. She was still a little sleepy so she didn't notice the unconscious and wet forms of Pansy and Millicent on the opposite wall. Turning to her right side, she saw that Aiji was still sleeping. Deciding that her new friend would also appreciate showering before the future "Slytherin Princess" did, Sally-Anne started shaking Aiji before anyone could say anything. Much to Lythiel and Daphne's shock, Aiji did not hit her like she did to the other two girls. She merely turned around and mumbled something in Japanese. /Five more minutes, 'Ka-san/ Lythiel mentally translated. She never thought that her Japanese linguistic lessons would come in handy like they did at the moment.

/Ano, Potter-san, perhaps it would be in your best interest to wake up now/ Lythiel spoke, with a slight British accent in her otherwise fluent Japanese.

/Hey, you're not my 'Ka-san/ exclaimed a now awake Aiji. Two years of living in the Makai kind of hardened her sleeping habits, not to mention forced her to wake up whenever she hears an "unknown" voice. It wasn't as effective as Yusuke's instinctive knowledge as to who was friend or foe, but it was something.

A cute golden haired girl met her vision. Next to her was an elegant champagne haired girl. 'What is it with Slytherin and pretty girls?' The last girl that met her vision was Sally-Anne, which calmed her down as she remembered yesterday's events. "Welcome back to the world of the living, Aiji. And here I thought that I was a heavy sleeper." Joked Sally-Anne.

"Ha ha ha, very funny bishoujo-chan" mumbled a sleepy Aiji, "You're not the one that has to suffer both jet-lag and train-lag. I feel like I could sleep the whole sun-fucking day."

"You do realize that is an impossible analogy, don't you?" Sally-Anne shot back.

"Who cares? I'm sleepy, cranky and I'm suffering jet-lag; I'd say that that I deserve to curse my head off" grumbled Aiji, "What time is it, anyways?" she looked at her watch that, surprisingly, read 6:04. "Aren't we supposed to be at breakfast at 8?" asked Aiji as a tic appeared in her right eyebrow. She was NOT a morning person.

/Hai, but we thought that you would appreciate a long shower before classes start. Unfortunately, the staff doesn't let us students have a day off to get rid of our train-lag. Or in your case, jet-lag./ responded Lythiel in Japanese, hoping to appease the violent girl. Who knew that her pre-Hogwarts Muggle Studies would also come in handy.

/You're the one that spoke to me in nihongo before, right/ said Aiji /What's your name and your friend's, ao-gan/

/Watashi wa Moon Lythiel./ Lythiel introduced herself. Then she pointed at Daphne /She goes by the name Greengrass Daphne/

/Atashi wa Urameshi Aiji, pleased to meet you/ Aiji introduced herself as well.

It didn't take long for Daphne and Sally-Anne to figure out what Lythiel and Aiji were discussing. "Oh, sorry about that, Aiji. I forgot to introduce Daphne and Lythiel." Said Sally-Anne sheepishly. "This is Daphne Greengrass and the one that speaks Japanese is Lythiel Moon"

"You're a little slow in the morning, aren't you bishoujo-chan?" teased Aiji good-naturedly. She liked these girls. Especially since her new friend was trying to make her stay at Hogwarts easier.

"What does that mean?" asked Sally-Anne. She had heard Aiji call her that the other night but was too tired from the train ride to ask.

"It means pretty girl" responded Lythiel. Aiji grinned. "My nii-chan and I have the tendency to give nicknames to the people that we like"

"Good to know that we meet your approval" spoke Daphne with amusement. The champagne haired girl liked this Alyssa Potter, she at least had a great sense of humor.

"Heh, you more than 'meet my approval' with your cute looks" Aiji jested back. Suddenly she took out her wand from underneath her pillow, pointed it at herself and mumbled a spell. 'A translation spell' thought the three English girls.

"Sorry, even after the month of Hell studying English; I still need this spell to read, write and sometimes speak English." Said Aiji apologetically.

"No problem. If it was me I wouldn't be able to even understand a different language" Daphne waved it off, "The sciences are more my area than the humanities"

Sally-Anne made a face, "That's the complete opposite of me; I am horrible at the sciences while the humanities are my forte"

"You two are lucky that you even have academic fortes. I'm bound to suck at anything that has to do with school." Aiji snorted, "There's a reason as to why the teachers in my old elementary school practically began celebrating the minute they heard that I was leaving"

"Don't be too sure, Aiji-san. I'm practically a squib yet with a little bit of hard work; I should be able to at least be a decent witch" said a shame-faced Lythiel.

"Squib? That rings bell. But where the fuck did I hear that word?" asked a thoughtful Aiji. "And since we're there, call me Aiji. Aiji-san makes me feel old" the forest haired girl joked.

Aiji's little joke lessened Lythiel's slight pout. You've got to had it to those Urameshis, they sure know how to break the ice. "A squib is someone that is born to a witch and a wizard yet possesses little to no magic. I'm not exactly a squib, but I'm on the edge of becoming one."

"Bah, it's not like you need to use magic for all of the subjects. In Astronomy you only need a telescope; in History of Magic you don't need jack shit; in Herbiology you work with the plants and seldom use your wand; and you don't need a wand in Potions. In short, the only classes that you need to worry about are Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms and Transfiguration." Aiji snorted 'See, I can learn **something** if it interests me'.

"That's why my goals are to excel at those subjects, both in the practical and the theory. And to at least do decently in the theory for Charms, Transfiguration and DADA. I want to prove that even with a small magical talent you can still become a great witch. Or at least a decent one." Normally, Lythiel would never say this in public. However, considering that her 'audience' (for lack of better term) was Aiji (who didn't seem to care about the pureblood power pyramid or the PPP), Daphne (who already knew) and Sally-Anne (who, despite being a Perks, never cared for the PPP). Pansy and Millicent were still unconscious. A punch from the Lady of Toranin, even with restraints, is still more than enough to KO wizards for a while. Morag and Stacie were enjoying their showers. So 'the coast was clear' for Lythiel.

"I think that's a great goal. In fact, it's obvious that you're going to have an easier time in some areas of magic than the rest of us because of your low magical reserves. Since you have smaller reserves, they are going to be easier to control than the regular sized ones. So that's one advantage that you have over the rest. While we waste some magic because we don't control 100 of our magic (only the majority of it), you're not going to waste any magic because of your perfect control". Aiji may not even reach the average when it comes to academic skills. However, in the battlefield, like her brother, she is practically a tensai. Magic was like a different form of reiki. Something that Aiji, Yusuke and Kuwabara had mastered long ago. Not to mention that Genkai had practically drilled into their heads all that she knew about it. Which was a lot, mind you.

"For someone that only knew about the wizarding world for one month, you sure seem to pick up little details that others take for granted" said an amused and amazed Sally-Anne.

'Damn, if they're suspicious of me, I'm dead' "Not really. I just compared magic to the physical body. I've been a street fighter for as long as I can remember and I've been practicing martial arts for three years; give or take a few months." The three girls raised their eyebrows at that. Obviously they couldn't tell the difference between one and the other. "Yes, there is a difference between the two. A street fighter doesn't learn how to fight by taking classes but by experience. While martial arts consist of taking classes and following a certain fighting style. Anyway, from my experience I noticed that the fighters with the least physical strength made up for it with their perfect control over their bodies. You know the expression "he doesn't know his own strength"? Well that's what usually happens to the fighters who are naturally strong but were never trained to control their strength. In fact, that used to happen to me and my brother before we studied under Genkai-baa-chan."

"I don't think that you can compare magic to physical strength, but the thought is nice" replied Lythiel. It was nice of Aiji to come up with a semi-theory as to why her low magical reserves would be advantageous. That seemed to lift her spirits.

"By the way guys, why don't we head for the showers right now before the rest of the girls leave us with no hot water." Aiji suggested, still not noticing unconscious figures of the Parkinson and Bulstrode heiresses. So mornings weren't the best hours of the day for the only female member of the Reikai Tantei team (Botan, being a ferry girl, did not count. Neither did Koenma who was the Shinigami), sue her.

"For one, the baths and showers never run out of hot water", seeing Aiji's confused face she replied with a mumble of "magic". That seemed to clear the confusion of the emerald-haired girl's face. So Daphne continued in Sally-Anne's stead, "For two, the only ones that have used the shower for now are Stacie and Morag". To both the brunette and the greenhead's shock; the two blondes pointed to Pansy and Millicent's prone and soaked forms.

"The Hell happened to those two?" wondered a puzzled Aiji. 'Who the fuck did they piss off so badly, and what crawled up the assailant's ass?'

"Um, you kind of punched them in your sleep when they tried to douse you with water. Apparently they thought that it would be an amusing wake up call" Daphne rolled her eyes at the pair on the floor while looking at Aiji in awe.

Aiji, for her part, was nervous. 'Oh shit, damn, fuck, I am so dead! So much for keeping the weird, supernatural and insanely crazy things of my life a secret! At least I was using the reiki/youki restriction bands, otherwise I would've killed them!' "How about we go take a shower and then wake them up? I'd say that that's payback enough for now, since they won't have much time to take one when we're done" That doesn't mean that she was going to forgive the two girls for their failed prank, though.

The three girls nodded. They had all been taught the principles of revenge; how it was used as a tool to scare others and to make other Clans think twice before messing with you. Even if Millicent and Pansy's 'attack' was petty, it deserved some kind of retribution. Otherwise, everyone in Slytherin would consider her weak and pick on her. And they didn't mean the childish teasing, oh no. It's a hard transaction, that of between Hogwarts Houses. Especially those between Gryffindor and Slytherin: the House that you were supposed to be on considers you a traitor while your actual House treats you like shit if you're weak.

Besides, the Parkinson's always prided themselves for always being on time and looking their best at the same time. It wouldn't do for her and Bulstrode to be late at their first Hogwarts' breakfast; especially since their Head of House, Professor Snape, is always in a foul mood in the morning (another person who hates waking up early). So he is only going to hand their schedules once, screw whatever happens to the stragglers. Apparently since all Slytherin first years have the same schedule, they could share. House loyalty was a must, especially if any of the four Houses wanted to win the House Cup. So therefore, sharing their schedules with the late arrivals was a must if they didn't want Slytherin to loose points due to tardiness in class. That was Snape's well-founded and proven theory.

However, Severus Snape was a practical man who cared not for the frivolities that most pureblood Clans seemed to pride themselves with. Such as who was the best dressed, the one who has the most expensive decorations, the ones who are best groomed… the Parkinsons were such a Clan. Not only did Pansy have to be on time for breakfast; but she had to be in her best robes for the best first impression; groomed her hair to 'perfection'; have as many jewels and other expensive accessories on her as humanly possible; and, lastly, have her trusty bodyguard in tow. All of that so that she could create the "Slytherin Princess" image and make sure that that title belonged to her and only her. Too bad that the first impression is the most important one when it comes to titles like these. At the rate that this was going; Pansy and Millicent would either be late or Pansy will just have to content herself with a hasty wash up to make it in time for breakfast.

The four girls made it inside the bathroom just as Stacie and Morag were coming out. The bathroom, or rather bathrooms, were all divided into eight. That way all eight Slytherin girls could have their privacy while showering or bathing or whatever. 'Apparently Hebi-jii-san valued privacy a lot. Points to him'.

Koenma had warned her about the different bathroom structures of each House.

The Gryffindors all shared one bathroom per year and sex ('Shishi-jii-san must've been a cheep and greedy dude. Not that I'm one to talk, it must've cost Hebi-jii-san a fortune to have individual bathrooms in one "House"').

The Hufflepuffs shared a bathroom for two or three (depending if the number of students were pair numbers or impair ones) per year and sex.

And the Ravenclaws all sharedtwo bathrooms; one for the boys, one for the girls('Tori-baa-san was even more cheep than Shishi-jii-san, if possible').

According to Koenma, Rowena Ravenclaw wanted everything to be a learning experience for her students; even learning about puberty by examining their older counterparts. Also, from what Koenma remembers of the knowledge-obsessed woman, was that if it weren't for her fellow founders and them explaining how politically incorrect it was; she would've had her entire House sharing only one bathroom. From the looks of things, she considered any kind of knowledge deprivation as a heinous crime.

Koenma had warned her of these things because he felt that the more privacy Aiji got the better. Besides, the possibility of her ending up in Ravenclaw was laughable. Her, Urameshi Aiji, number one elementary school delinquent and all around rebel; knowledge crazy? Maybe for battle, but for other things… how shall I put it… no way in Hell.

Picking the bathroom that was closest to a window (just incase she needed another escape route) Aiji made her way to the shower. At this rate the only thing that would wake her up would be a quick cold shower. But, considering the fact that she had to endure a plane ride from Japan, a train ride from England and wasted even more time before she got to eat and sleep; Aiji was going to take her time with a hot shower.

By the time she was done with her shower Daphne was adding to her outfit some gold and emerald rose earrings to match her green eyes; Sally-Anne was just coming out of the shower; Lythiel was putting on her expensive robes; and it was 6:50. Morag and Stacie were nowhere in sight. And most importantly, Pansy and Millicent were still out cold.

Not caring about her semi-nudity in her towel clad form; Aiji sauntered over to her luggage, took out a vial and went towards her unconscious housemates. She placed the vial full of vinegar in front of their noses and watched as they both woke up.

"Rise and shine princesses. You guys are going to be late for breakfast. It's already six fifty" said Aiji in a sing-song voice. 'I'll be damned, Kurama was right. Vinegar can wake anyone up.'

"What! It can't be!" cried a panicked Pansy. This was not a good day for her. She knew that she wouldn't have enough time to shower, groom, dress and decorate herself in that small amount of time. Standing up quickly, Pansy and Millicent rushed to the bathrooms as if a demon was chasing them.

Aiji just shrugged at their hasty retreat and began to dress herself. As she did, three pairs of eyes gazed at her with awe and envy. While Daphne, Lythiel and Sally-Anne had slim and graceful figures; Aiji had a strong and muscular one. While the three English girls could've been mistaken for noble ladies just by looking at them, Aiji was an Amazon.

Even now that the four girls were dressed, there was clearly a huge difference between them. Daphne, Lythiel and Sally-Anne were wearing expensive robes while Aiji just wore a triple C one.

Daphne was wearing her gold and emerald earrings, necklace and rings (left and right ring fingers); her hair was styled in a gorgeous half bun that showed off her Veela like features yet showed off her champagne blonde hair as well. Her bag was made of green velvet and hung off her shoulder. All in all, Daphne looked like a Princess instead of a Hogwarts student.

Lythiel wasn't dressed as extravagantly as her best friend. Being an almost squib had taught her that no matter how 'Slytherin Princess' she looked, her family would still be ashamed of her. The only reason that they didn't disown her or anything like that was because after giving birth to her, Lythiel's mother became barren for some reason. Since Lythiel was his only heir; and his magical marriage contract won't allow him to divorce his wife or impregnate another woman, Mr. Moon had to 'content' himself with Lythiel. Therefore, Lythiel only wore her expensive robes,amethyst earrings and had her hair in an elegant French braid (she had to follow some pureblood social rules). Her leather bag was full of all the course books for the year.

Sally-Anne was also wearing her expensive school robes and her dark blue plush bag was also hanging off her right shoulder. Her decorations consisted mostly of a sapphire pendant and azure earrings; her hair was in a braided half ponytail with cerulean hairclips. Yet another 'Slytherin Princess' look alike.

Aiji was the complete oxymoron of that. Her robes were comfortable and, should the situation call for it, easy to fight with. Her shoulder blade length hair was up in a messy ponytail, with hairs sticking out of it. Instead of using the traditional school girl dress code; Aiji wore her "Hot Topic" black pants that had chain to her waist and pocket, black sneakers and a sleeveless white t-shirt. All of this covered by her robes and her silver and green tie was present. Though the lack of a white shirt's collar might pose some questions; but hey, the dress code said that you needed a white shirt and dark pants. They _implied_ that they wanted it to be a classical uniform, but they didn't say it outright. So therefore, Aiji was still following the dress code. And if they didn't like it then they can kiss her ass. The finishing touches were her silver (small) hoop earrings and her Timberland school bag full of graffiti. All in all, Aiji looked like the rebel that she was.

They left the dorms and headed for the Great Hall. After a couple of wrong turns and some "point mes" from Lythiel; the four girls made it for breakfast. Stacie (who looked like a "poupée" according to Sally-Anne; due to her chestnut braided pigtails and heavy makeup) and Morag (who had her nose in a book while eating) were already there. As were Draco, Vincent, Gregory, Theodore and Blaise.

"Is there anyway that I can get some coffee?" and a cup of coffee appeared in front of Aiji. Apparently, the House Elves like students that stuff themselves with food. That or the ancient relic told them to do what she wanted; probably hoping to score brownie points with her. Whatever.

As Aiji ate her scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, biscuits, cereal (with milk) and coffee; she pondered as to how se was going to get some Japanese food. She could really go for some mochi right now. Or, better yet, some sakuramochi. Maybe she should take a trip to the kitchens, wherever the hell they are, and ask the house elves for some Japanese food. If only to keep the homesickness at bay.

Once she finished ravishing her huge breakfast, she turned to her new friends. Daphne was eating her scrambled eggs; Sally-Anne was nibbling some biscuits and drinking her milk; and Lythiel just drank her coffee. /Good to know that there's another coffee addict around here, besides me that is/ murmured Aiji to Lythiel. /That and I can't wake up completely until I've had my morning coffee/ replied Lythiel without missing a beat.

Just then, their Head of House began to hand out their schedules. At that same moment, Pansy and Millicent rushed into the Great Hall. Millicent had her hair wet from her hasty shower and Pansy didn't even have time to put on her make up and jewels. Snape didn't even spare them a glance as he handed them their schedules.

Although, Aiji's sharp demon ears were able to pick his muttering of "Blasted 'fashionably late' ideals, a load of good that does to people.". He would get along just fine with 'Ka-san. Instead of wearing jewels, she sells them. Hey, life is tough and money is scarce.

Aiji took notice that her friends were done with their meager breakfasts, then she signaled to them with a nod of her head out of the Great Hall. The quartet soon found themselves walking around the maze like castle. Taking a page from Lythiel, Aiji used a "point me" spell to indicate her where she wanted to go. The two blondes and the brunette thought that she was taking them to their Transfiguration Class (since it was their first class of the day). However, they doubted that the Transfiguration Classroom had the portrait of a peach in front of it.

"Um, where are we?" asked Daphne, thinking that the spell had led them in the wrong direction.

"Supposedly, the kitchens" replied a nonchalant Aiji.

"You do realize that we have Transfiguration in one hour?" asked a nervous Sally-Anne. While her father had told her that Professor Snape favored Slytherin above all else, he had not mentioned about how biased (or unbiased) the Head of Gryffindor is. Since Gryffindor and Slytherin were eternal enemies; she did not want to make a bad impression and have the Deputy Headmistress on her case for the rest of her stay at Hogwarts.

'Hiei-nii, are you there?' Aiji sent a psychic message to the male Koorime. Hiei said that he would stop by on her first day of classes, just to check up on her. Knowing Hiei, he was most likely doing it as a favor for Yusuke. Being older brothers, they both knew what it was like to go on an apoplectic rage should anything happen to their precious imoutos. No doubt to Hiei, Aiji was another little sister. Just like Yusuke considered Yukina as another little sister to take care of.

'Chibi-Tora, what kind of mischief have you gotten into?' Hiei replied, amusement lacing his voice.

'Not yet, Hiei-nii. I was just wondering if you knew how to get into the kitchens. I would do it the normal way for us, but I have company with me.'

'It figures that the first thing you think about is food.' Answered Hiei, 'Wait one second and I'll tell you how to get in'. After taking a peak into the house elves minds, the Jaganshi told Aiji that to get in she had to tickle the pear.

'Thanks Hiei-nii, I'll talk to you when I can'

'You're welcome Aiji'

With Hiei's instruction in mind, Aiji tickled the pear. The portrait opened and the foursome entered the kitchen. Although the English threesome was confused as to how Aiji knew how to get in, though they didn't voice it. If she wanted to spill then she would on her own. Without probing.

"Yo, do any one of you know how to do Japanese food?" I don't think anyone needs to guess who said that.

"That be Slinky, ma'am. Slinky is honored to serve ma'am" answered a house elf

/Does that mean that he's Slinky/ Aiji asked Lythiel.

/Hai/

/Aiya, oujou-sama speaks Japanese! What can Slinky do for oujou-sama/

/No need to be so formal Slinky, just call me Aiji/

/Aiji-sama is too too kind to Slinky. How may I be of service/

/Ne, you wouldn't happen to know how to make sakuramochi, mochi, ramen, okonomiyaji and other stuff like that. Would you/

/Slinky be honored to do this task. Does Aiji-sama wish to have them now/

/I'll just take a couple of sakuramochis and mochis for the breaks. Domo arigato Slinky/

/Right away Aiji-sama/ Slinky 'poofed' for a while, maybe for three to five minutes, then came back with four bags in each hand. The on the left containing sakuramochi. The right, mochi.

/Thanks again Slinky/

/Slinky is honored to serve Aiji-sama/ then he 'poofed' out of the Slytherin quartet's sight.

"What did you ask him to make?" asked Sally-Anne as they left the kitchens. They wereusing Daphne's "point me" to get to the Transfiguration Classroom.

"Just some mochi and sakuramochi for our breaks. You guys hardly ate enough at breakfast, and ao-gan didn't eat anything. So these are for our breaks should we get hungry."

"Thanks Aiji, that's very thoughtful of you. But what is mochi and sakuramochi?" asked Daphne

"Mochi is a Japanese rice bean cake. Sakuramochi is the same; only that you add Sakura, Cherry Blossom, petals for a sweeter taste. Not that a regular mochi isn't sweet already." Answered Lythiel. "I've never had one; but they're supposed to be sweet and delicious."

"Figured that we would need some of these if our first teacher is the woman with a ten foot spiked pole up her ass", shrugged Aiji. At their bewildered looks, she shrugged again, "I've had a lot of teachers like that. Trust me, after years of having those, I can tell one is like that from miles away."

* * *

The foursome entered the classroom five minutes before the bell rang. Apparently the stairs like to torment first years. Too bad that it won't be the same after a Karate chop from Aiji broke one of its railings. Oh well, c'est la vie. 

Although her knew friends were amazed at the impressive show of strength; Aiji waved it off saying that her sensei, Genkai-baa-chan, had made her break boulders with her own hands. The best kind of lie is the one that is closest to the truth.

"What's with the cat?" asked Aiji to no one in particular.

"Who knows, maybe it's Professor McGonagall's familiar" answered Sally-Anne.

/Guess that we can't eat before class/ said Lythiel sardonically.

Though Daphne and Sally-Anne didn't understand a word of Japanese, they did understand why Lythiel was looking at Aiji. She was the one who held their snacks.

Shrugging, Aiji made her way to the back of the class and sat down.

"Um, Aiji…you do realize that you're in the Gryffindor part of the class?" a nervous Sally-Anne asked

"I don't see any red and gold here so who cares? First come, first serve. And I'm staying in the back of the class"

The Slytherin and Gryffindor first years had learned something that day, Alyssa Potter was as stubborn as a mule.

Daphne, Sally-Anne and Lythiel didn't want to stick around the Gryffindor area; but they didn't want to leave their friend to the clutches of the lions. Lord knows what they would do to her because she was a snake instead of a lion like she was supposed to be.

"Changing sides so quickly Potter? Never knew you were that fickle", it seems that Draco Malfoy either has selective memory or he is proud idiot.

"Wow, your hair is the same color as yesterday, Blondie. So which hair dye do you use daily? Platinum blond #1? Word of advice dickhead, stick to what you know. Go back to dying your hair in unnatural colors", so what if these were almost the same words that Koto had said to Botan in the Dark Tournament? It was definitely working on infuriating the pale pest.

"THIS IS MY NATURAL HAIR COLOR, YOU UNCOUTH KNAVE!" cried a red-faced Draco.

"Denial is not just a river in Egypt, Blondie. Or should I say Unnatural Blondie. Come on; how bad could it be that you have to dye your hair and then gel in back so that the roots don't show?" pressed a smirking Aiji. No wonder Hiei-nii always made it a point to insult Kuwa-nii, the angry expression on your rival's face is fun to watch.

"THAT'S IT! CRABBE, GOYLE."

As the male Slytherin bodyguards made their way menacingly towards Aiji, they were both hoping that (if they were correct about the girl's strength) the forest-haired girl would show them **some** mercy. They were only doing their job, for Salazar's sake!

Aiji told her friends with her eyes not to interfere, though they really wanted to. How dare that jerk decide to sic his bodyguards at their friend! (Note that these girls are slightly feminists and would like nothing more than for purebloods to stop looking at females like their only role is to be a breeding bitch)

Just as they had started to pull on the front of her robes; Aiji grabbed their wrist and squeezed. A little bit… for her.

Vince and Greg, however, could feel their wrist bones being crushed; causing them to let go of her robes. Aiji then proceeded to dust the imaginary dirt off Vince and Greg's shoulders. Then she grabbed them by the front of their robes and threw them vertically in the air. Using only a little bit of strength, mind you. Too bad for the boys that a little bit for Aiji is more then enough to send them to the ceiling.

McGonagall was going to hear a complaint sometime during the day. Why did Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle's torsos appear in the floor above the Transfiguration classroom?

Hi there Stone Silence. How are the wife and kids?

McGonagall, in her cat form, was utterly speechless. Where the bloody Hell did that girl get her strength from! She was going to transform back into a human to reprimand the boys when they had touched the girl (she may be a bit miffed that Alyssa wasn't a Gryffindor; but that didn't mean that she was going to allow her house peers to beat her black and blue!) but when the two boys didn't do anything when Alyssa grabbed their wrists; she thought the ordeal over with. Minerva knew that it was in self defense, but all the same! This. Was. Not. Supposed. To. Happen. 'I'm a good teacher, I'm always fair. So why did this happen to me!'

Everyone was in such a shock that they didn't hear the bell ring. Nor did they see Ronald Weasley rushing into the class, late.

Seeing that more "competition" for the back seats of the class had entered; Aiji took Sally-Anne, Lythiel and Daphne's bags and put them on the tables closest to hers. Then she made the owners of said bags sit at their respective tables.

"Say Red" she was talking to Ron "Have you seen the teacher at the corridors? She's late."

Now that woke Minerva from her karma angst.

Transforming back into a human, she said "Actually, Miss Potter, it is Mister Weasley who is late."

* * *

tensai: prodigy or genius 

baa-chan: informal way of saying grandma

ao-gan: blue eyes ("ao" is blue and "gan" is eyes) and Lythiel's new nickname (since her eyes are blue)

midori-gan: green eyes and Daphne's new nickname (her eyes are green)

bichoujo-chan: pretty girl and sally-Anne's new nickname

jii-chan: informal way of saying grandpa

oujou-san: princess, it is also a formal way of addressing a female customer

hai: yes

iie: formal way of saying "no"

imouto: little sister otouto: little brother

Watashi wa: formal way of saying "My name is". Watashi is the formal way of saying "I", it is neutral as far as gender goes.

Atashi wa: informal way of saying "My name is". Atashi is the female informal "I". Ore is the male


	4. Oops! I knocked out again!

Hello everyone, I hope not that many of you wish to kill me for the school-year delay. BUT! I actually have a pretty good excuse, so drop those pitchforks for five seconds please! This was my last year of high school, and what do you know, it's college application time! First trimester was spent searching for colleges and then applying to NYU for Early Decision (didn't get in). The next trimester was spent in applying to six schools, and then start studying for my baccalaureat (I go to a French school and the baccalaureat is like a required national french exam in order to get into French or Canadian colleges, works wonders for credit negotiating in American ones too). And the last trimester was spent keeping up with my studies, deciding which bloody college I wanted to attend (go Eugene Lang!), and studying for my bac. I just got my bac results last night (I passed!) so I'm now officially free, on vacation, and ready to continue writting this baby.

And if that doesn't make people want to drop the pitchforks, I made this chapter longer than the others. I've been working on and off since the school year started so this is longer than any chapter I imagined writting. Although, this time, I promise that the next chapter is on the way. Hope you like this one though, and if it feels rushed, then maybe I do deserve the pitchforks.

* * *

Once again, Stone Silence had graced the Transfiguration Classroom. But not for long. 

"Hey, cool technique, teach. Is that the only animal that you can turn to? And how many years did it take you to master it?" three guesses as to who would be disrespectful enough to call the Deputy Headmistress "teach".

To her credit, McGonagall only twitched an eyebrow at the "teach" comment. "It's Professor McGonagall, Miss Potter. And yes, I can only turn into a cat, no other animal. It took me about seven years to master it", unknowingly, Aiji had taken Minerva's attention away from the bodyguards.

"That long? Does that mean that we need all the years at Hogwarts to learn how to do that?" asked a curious Sally-Anne. 'Damn, why didn't dad explain about animagi better? I just know that the other people in Slytherin are going to be onto me for that question. Saperlipopette (1), open mouth, insert foot.'

Though, from the looks of it, everyone, including the purebloods, wanted to know the answer. Sally-Anne breathed a silent sigh of relief as she observed this. Aiji's demon ears picked up on her sigh but she didn't say anything. Hey, if the girls were considerate enough to not bring out the Spanish Inquisition on her secrets, then she won't be a nosy bitch.

"No, Miss Perks. Animagi training can only start until you are at the very least fourteen years old. By that time, your magical cores **should **be mature enough to endure it. This kind of training is very difficult because it requires extensive amount of control over your magic, and quite the amount of magical energy to pull it off to begin with. What makes it even harder is that you do not use a wand, so your focus point for your magic is different. And as for how long it takes to master it, it depends on the person, really. Someone can become an Animagi only after three years of training. Or it can be after ten years."

As she continued her "lesson" (she had not planed on starting with Animagi, but then again at least they will be prepared for third year); she noted that Gryffindor Hermione Granger and Slytherins Lythiel Moon and Sally-Anne Perks were taking notes and hanging on to her every word. Slytherin Morag McDougal was not exactly as radical as the three other girls; however, she was taking (what Minerva assumed) short notes and seemed to be trying to use the course book as a reference. Too bad that she won't find much since they only start to cover animagi in third year. She pegged them to be good students and that she would have no trouble working with them. The rest of the class was also paying very close attention, though some of them were disappointed that they wouldn't be able to become Animagi any time soon.

"Should any of you decide to undergo Animagi training." Here she gave them a stern glance, "Remember that you should take it with a Transfiguration Master or Mistress helping you. Some animals are easy to transform into, and, should any accidents happen, not damage your bodies permanently. However, if your animagus form is that of a fish, for example, then the possibility of dieing due to lack of oxygen is very high. That is why you need a master to help you with the training; we don't want any unnecessary deaths or traumas to happen, do we?" Some of the class looked very scared at the prospect of dieing. "Also, you need to register yourself as an animagus at the Ministry. To be an unregistered one has six months in Azkaban for a consequence"

"What! Wait a minute, old lady. How come the Ministry needs to know that you're an Animagus? That's a technique that you learned and, frankly, it's no ones business but yours. Useless bureaucrats!"

Before McGonagall could open her mouth to respond or retort, Sally-Anne intervened, "So how do you choose your animagus form, Professor McGonagall?" This is what Outer Sally-Anne said in a polite and respectful tone. However, this is what Inner Sally-Anne is saying 'Asinine old bitch! Don't even think about taking away House Points, you fucking old hag! Just try to take them from my friend! Vieille salope (2)!'

No she isn't schizophrenic, nor does she suffer from MPD.

"You do not choose the animal, Miss Perks, the animal chooses you. It depends on personality, character and the such. However, there is a potion that allows you to glimpse at what animal you shall be, should you decide to undergo the training"

"So if I decide that I want to take that training in Japan, do I still have to register myself for the UK Ministry? Back at home you don't have to register yourself if you're an animagus." 'Ah, so it was cultural difference' thought Minerva. That seemed to relax her shoulders.

"It depends as to what your citizenship is, Miss Potter."

"Then I don't have to register since I'm a Japanese citizen" it wasn't a question.

"Quite right" McGonagall responded anyway.

Then Minerva proceeded to do her actual lesson speech and plan. Sadly, after her explanation of animagi, turning her desk into a pig did not have a big an impact as it would've on normal occasions. Though, it did prove to her that Slytherin had a very good student that she would not have minded being in her own House.

"Does the object that you are transforming have to have the same length and/or weight as the thing that you wish to transform it into? And what is the time limit that a transfigured object has?" asked Lythiel. 'If I can't succeed in the practical, might as well know everything there is to know about the theory of Transfiguration'

"Not necessarily, Miss Moon. Because the desk is more or less the same height and weight as the pig that I turned it into, it is a simple transfiguration. The more the object that you wish to transfigure has in common with what you want it to turn into, the easier it is." At that, she noticed that the majority of the class was shocked that what she had done was considered easy. "However, the more the object's weight and the larger their length is, the more difficult it is to do. Transfiguration is an Art with many layers of difficulty that requires fine control. As for time limit, it depends on the caster: how strong their magical reserves are and how much magical control they possess."

After a while of note taking (for some) on difficult wand movements; McGonagall gave them each a match, with instructions of turning it into a needle.

Noticing Lythiel's nervousness, Aiji decided to cheer her up /Hey, relax ao-gan. Neko-baba did say that you need perfect control of your magic to do this. If anything this should prove my theory correct./

/Easy for you to say/ Lythiel mumbled.

Aiji did something that her old teachers would have considered a miracle: she raised her hand. Impolite, rude and juvenile delinquent Urameshi Aiji… raising her hand like a normal student? Oh dear, are those flying horsemen that I'm seeing in the sky? Don't tell me that the huge-ass worm that coils itself around the world has risen from the water!

'Yeah, that would be something that they would say if they saw me right now. Fucking tight-assed teachers. But I kinda need her help on this one'

"Yes, Miss Potter"

"You wouldn't mind doing a couple of demonstrations. It's one thing to be told to do something, another to be shown" 'Come on, do it so that I know how much reiki/magic I have to use'

"Very well, I don't see the harm in that. Though, it is not possible to get it right the first time."

With a well placed _Converto_, Minerva had changed the match into a needle. Instead of the awe that many other students showed at her obvious mastery, Aiji had a look of utter concentration on her face. She seemed the most focused at her teacher's wand.

'Well that's interesting. Never would've pegged you as a student who wants to do well'

'You know that's not why I want to do this, Hiei-nii. If magic is just a different branch of reiki, then I want to know what kind of limits I have'

'Hn, just so you know, you only need a little bit of energy. It has to be the same size as the object since you're resorting to pure Alchemy here. You might need some more for the pointy part of the needle.'

'How did you know that?' asked a perplexed Aiji.

'You're forgetting that I'm older than I look, Aiji.' Laughed Hiei, 'Also, Mukuro's new hobby is ningen Alchemy. Apparently it alleviates the pain that she seldom feels on the metal parts of her body.'

'So the secret to Transfiguration is to use as much energy to cover the object and then some more for the modifications. That's why you need to have perfect control over your magic to do this.'

'I don't know. Why don't you test the waters? The Alchemy that I saw did not require that foolish wand bullshit.'

'Yeah, but if you look at it this way, Transfiguration is a form of Alchemy since you're changing the molecules and cells to make a different object.'

'Never knew that Kurama and the ningen girl could be such great teachers and miracle workers. They actually managed to ram some information into your thick skull'

'Shut up. You know as well as I do that I need to know the basics of magic if I want to avoid being found out. Do you have any idea the blackmail and threats that those two did throughout the whole summer? Honestly, it wouldn't be THAT bad if the wizarding world learned of the Reikai'

'You're just saying that because you hate studying. Now quit complaining and get on with it, some of your classmates probably think that you're dead or something'

'Crap!'

"Aiji? Are you alright?" asked a concerned Daphne. Lythiel and Sally-Anne were just as worried. Aiji was just staring into nothing with a pensive look on her face. They may have not known the violent girl for long, but a thoughtful look on her bronzed face seemed odd.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about how I'm gonna do this." 'If Hiei's right then ao-gan should not have any problems in this class, for now.'

'Okay, just take a small wisp of reiki, only take it from the magic branch. Only take enough to surround the match.' One of the good things about Genkai's spirit cuffs training is that it gave you perfect control of your reiki.

Even though Aiji had to concentrate to use only reiki instead of combining it with youki as she usually does, it pretty much helped her blend in with the struggling students. Although using youki would definitely help, it would not be wise to alert anyone that she uses it while she is undercover.

"_Converto_", the wand movement wasn't exactly the same as the one that the Professor had shown, but, fortunately, no one noticed. Even Sally-Anne, Lythiel and Daphne were too busy trying to turn their match into a needle. However, since her match did turn into a semi-needle, their attention rapidly turned to her.

"How did you do that?" asked all three girls.

"Just used the amount of magic that I would need to surround the match. Though, it doesn't really look like the traditional needle, ne?"

"Surround…what?" asked a lost Daphne.

"Pretend that your magic is like a blue aura, or whatever your favorite color is. Then surround it around the object so that the transformation can complete itself. At least that's how I did it"

Sally-Anne looked pensive. But then she remembered the ki attacks in one of her favorite animes DragonBallZ, 'maybe that's were Aiji got her inspiration from'. With that though in mind, Sally-Anne began to concentrate in a similar manner that Aiji had.

"_Converto_" and what do you know, after her fifth try, Sally-Anne's match had turned into a perfect needle.

Seeing Lythiel and Daphne's surprised faces, she answered "Used Aiji's advice"

Taking a page from their friends, the two blondes began to concentrate and did the spell a couple of times. After her twenty-ninth try, Lythiel had successfully turned her match into a needle. Daphne took a little longer than Sally-Anne, but after her tenth try, she had managed to make a wooden needle. So Potions and Herbiology were more her thing, sue her.

Of course McGonagall was too busy trying to get Crabbe and Goyle down without hurting them. "That will be five points from Slytherin for fighting, each."

"How much is that each" asked a bored Aiji

"You, Mr. Malfoy, Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle"

"Excuse me, Professor, I did not fight."

"No but you ordered Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle to fight. That counts as fighting"

Draco blushed in anger at not only losing the fight, but also at losing House Points on the first day. It was all Potter's fault. He glared at her, and received the bird in return. In plain sight. Obviously there are some things about Aiji that will never change.

Luckily, the teacher still had her back turned so no more points were taken away.

Sally-Anne, in desperate move to regain some House Points, raised her hand. As soon as the two boys were down again (and with stern instructions to go to the Hospital Wing for their concussions, which she noticed once they were revived, and ordering Stacie to go with them) Minerva went to their table.

Minerva was shocked that they were done already. Especially since two of them had perfect needles. So far, they were the only students to have any success at changing the match. Sure, Hermione Granger seemed to have an easier time than most muggleborns but she had not managed to transfigure the match yet. It was because magical cores can be influenced. A pureblood can have a stronger magical aura than a muggleborn mainly because they are surrounded by magic throughout their whole lives (in theory, anyway). That was one of the reasons why purebloods looked down on muggleborns.

"Very impressive that you've finished it so soon. Five points to Miss Perks and Miss Moon for a perfect transformation, three points to Miss Greengrass for an almost successful transfiguration. What is this Miss Potter?" asked the Transfiguration Mistress.

"It's a senbon, or an acupuncture needle. Usually used for Chinese medicine, but it can also be used in a fight if you know enough on anatomy." So what if Touya and Jin had taught her some of the overlooked shinobi weapons? It's much more interesting than class-work, that's for sure! And people wonder why she can remember things like that and forget about some school lesson. Humph!

"You did say to transfigure it into a needle, you didn't specify what kind", thank Inari that the translation spell was still holding up. Otherwise Aiji would've had a hard time saying this in one sentence. Hey, she only had a month to learn English, give a girl a break! Besides, she always did like to contradict teachers every time they have that smug 'I'm gonna belittle a student and make myself feel better' look.

"That I did Miss Potter" 'Mental note to self, next time specify what kind of needle I want. Or any kind of object or animal I want them to transfigure' "Two more points to Miss Greengrass and five points to Miss Potter for transfiguring the match into a needle."

She may be strict, but let it not be said that she was an unfair, biased bitch. Oh no, she was not going to sink into Severus' level. That was his fucking title!

As Minerva left the four girls to check up on the other students; Sally-Anne, Daphne and Lythiel couldn't believe their luck that they had managed to regain their House some points. Aiji, on the other hand, couldn't care less about House Points. As far as she was concerned, that was a shallow way of making one House look better than the others. Thus, making the students even more competitive (not in a good way) and distrusting of each other.

'Good thing that the ningen didn't notice that you didn't do the "correct" wand movements. Hell, you're lucky that no one detected you getting that spell right the first time. This is a dangerous game you're playing, detective. If one of them is even remotely suspicious of you, then the chances of Reikai being discovered by the ningens are going to get higher.'

'Look at it this way, Hiei-nii. Even if I do get caught, depending on the person, all I have to do is erase their memories. That or I can threaten them to keep their traps shut.'

'And how exactly are you going to do that? Last I checked you're not skilled enough in telepathy to erase memories just like that. And I don't think that Koenma will allow me to be here at all times, so me erasing people's memories for you has got to be limited.'

'Koenma had already thought about that. So he gave me one of those memory-erasing devices that Reikai used on Keiko-nee when you kidnapped her. Besides, I don't think that some people in Slytherin will actually squeal, the majority does hate the old ghoul's guts, you know.'

'Yeah, but it will be even worse if the ningen with the split souls finds out. It's going to be harder to obliterate that one's memories than the old relic.'

'His days are practically numbered, Hiei-nii. Or are you forgetting the fact that Kurama-nii, Yusuke-nii, Kuwabara-nii and later you are going to search for those Hor-thingies and destroy them? Besides, even at full strength he can forget about beating anyone of us.'

'You do remember the part that said that Reikai has got to be kept a secret before **and** after the mission is done. This one might take more than one year to accomplish that. Plus, if you graduate from that … school, they won't be on your case if you leave and never come back once the mission is over.'

'Hiei-nii, I already made it clear to that giant hanyou that I'm only here because I want payback on the son-of-a-bitch that killed my parents.'

'Whatever, look, these people have been thinking that you're going to be their savior no matter what. I sincerely doubt that they're going to change their opinions so soon in the game.'

'OK, OK, no more showing off (within limits) that I have complete control of my magic because of my training with reiki, got it.'

A gentle tap to her shoulder brought her back to the transfiguration class. /Are you alright Aiji? You seem to be spacing out a lot/. Lythiel wasn't the only one that was concerned; Sally-Anne and Daphne had worried frowns etched on their faces as well.

"I'm fine guys, just feeling a little homesick, is all." Aiji grinned, "Is Neko-baba busy with the other students?"

At the two girls confused stares Lythiel said "Neko-baba means "Old Cat" or "Old Hag of a Cat". It's a pun to Professor McGonagall's animagus form and to her old age." Then she directed a raised eyebrow towards Aiji, "You know, she may not be like Professor Snape when it comes to House Loyalty. But you might just give her the excuse that she needs to do so"

"What's the worst that she could do? Give me a detention? Yeah, they're annoying as hell, I'll admit, but it's not the end of the world if she gives me a couple." Aiji shrugged. "Anyway-"

"What are you snakes planning!" demanded the copper-haired Ronald Weasley. Apparently he was not happy about his lack of results with his match. It didn't help that the 'traitor' had already gotten it right without help.

"Take a chill pill Red. What the fuck crawled up your ass this morning?"

"Weasley, I was not under the impression that our conversation was any of your business" Daphne's voice had taken an icy edge, her dewy grass green eyes turned wintergreen. While Daphne did not believe the Weasleys were blood traitors (one of the perks of being from neutral family), however, she hated it when those self-righteous bigots judged all purebloods/Slytherins to be Voldemort worshippers. 'Really, they aren't any better then the Death Eaters'

"Who asked you!?"

"You know, Red, if you keep acting like a yaro (3) to my friends I might have to get violent. I happen to be a bit of a jerk when you piss me off." Aiji didn't really care about the teacher's reaction if she did fight him. No one treats her friends like shit and gets away with it.

"Are you threatening me, you Death Eater scum?!"

"Weasley, no one likes a prejudiced bastard" surprisingly, Lythiel had actually insulted the ill-tempered redhead. She would've preferred to have avoided an entire 'blood war' altogether but calling one of her friends a Death Eater scum is where she draws the line.

"What did you call me!?" demanded a red-faced Ron.

"Are you deaf, Red? You know, you might not treat the muggleborns like horseshit and I can respect that. But you know, your accusations of all Slytherins being Death Eaters makes you no better than old Voldy" at this point Minerva had made it to see what the commotion was all about, mainly because Sally-Anne had signaled for her to come.

"And what, pray tell, seems to be the problem here?"

"They just called me a 'prejudiced bastard'" pointed Ron, gleefully happy to get a bunch of Slytherins in trouble.

"You mean you aren't? With the way that you just assumed that all Slytherins are just… hum, what was it that you called us? 'Death Eater scum'… that indicates that you are just as prejudiced as whom you compared us to" Daphne was on a roll today. No one, and I mean no one, insulted her friends and got away from it unscathed. Just ask Zacharias Smith of the time when he was seven years old and had teased Lythiel to the point that she was in tears. He came back home with a black eye, a bloody nose and a handprint on his left cheek.

"Is that true, Mister Weasley?" Minerva could just feel that migraine of hers coming now.

"Well Potter started it by threatening me!"

"I wouldn't of had to if you weren't such an ass towards my friends. Besides, if you didn't want to fight then why didn't you keep your freckled nose out of our business?" Aiji's voice was flat and laid-back, she'd been in too many situations like these to actually give a damn, "And the name's Urameshi. What does a girl have to do to get people to get her name right?" with a final roll of her eyes, she leaned back on her chair.

"Miss Potter, five points shall be taken for your vulgar language. Mr. Weasley, five points for provoking the fight and another ten points for calling them such a horrid insult"

"You know, teach. This entire 'let's not call Aiji her real name' game is getting old."

"Technically, your real name is Alyssa Potter, so we are calling you your real name." Yep, that migraine wasn't going to leave her alone. 'I'm getting too old for this stupid rivalry'

"Just humor me, will you? I've been Aiji Urameshi for ten years, there's no need to change that"

'I'm only agreeing because of the migraine' "If you insist Miss Po- Urameshi"

"Thank you" 'Finally, one down, a couple of more to go'

* * *

Yuusuke Urameshi may the world's biggest lazy bastard, a chain smoker, authority hater, all around rebel and many other things. But right now, he was showing the world just how much he adored, cherished, loved, treasured and just plain worshipped the ground his baby sister walked on. 

No he wasn't saving the world, yet. He wasn't off on a Death Eater killing spree. Hell there was absolutely no violence involved in this task whatsoever. His act of love was…

Finding the Horcruxes. On his vacation and time off from school, Reikai and Toranin. And his only companion/partner in this current mission was Kurama, AKA his love interest.

That's right. While Kazuma was off partying; Botan was spending money from the Reikai on shopping sprees with Keiko, Yukina and Shizuru; and Koenma was doing paperwork; he, the Lord of Toranin, was sent to the middle of nowhere with the love of his life-though-he-doesn't-know-it, searching for items that stored pieces of a sick bastard with a snake fetish's soul!

Somehow, he had the feeling that his sneaky little sister had something to do with him being alone, in the middle of nowhere, with Kurama. She meant well, but it's not like Kurama likes him back! (He's a blind one, isn't he?)

I mean, come on! They're in the middle of nowhere, all alone and the heat is unbearable! Unbearable enough that Kurama was going shirtless.

See what his dilemma is? How the Hell do you expect someone who probably doesn't know what the word 'restraint' means to keep his hands off the delectable kitsune? It didn't help that he had to discard his own shirt because of the heat.

Really, searching for a dead man's object-entrapped soul pieces in the middle of nowhere, with the love of his life walking shirtless and looking so fucking _sexy_ next to him, yet he can't **touch**. If this didn't prove his undying love then he didn't know what will!

"I think that it should be in that cave, the one near the orphanage" Okay, so they weren't exactly in the middle of nowhere, the orphanage that Tom Marvolo Riddle was raised in was!

"He can't just die like a normal person can't he?" Yuusuke muttered, bitter that a bloody ningen with a God-complex had interrupted his, his friend's and his sister's downtime.

'**Remind me again why we haven't jumped him**' asked Youko, '**We're alone, we're shirtless, you want him as a life mate, I want him as a life mate, he's no longer with the female ningen, his mother approves of us, the cub is trying to get us together… so why aren't you taking advantage of the situation and marking him as yours?**'

'Easy, I will not do anything without Yuusuke's consent.'

"Say, Kurama. What do we do when we get those Hor-thingies? How do we destroy them without making a scene?"

"I believe Koenma mentioned that he was going to take care of that little problem himself. We just have to get them to him"

"You mean the slave-driver is actually going to do some dirty work for a change?" snorted Yuusuke in amusement.

Kurama merely smiled at his Toushin companion and continued walking towards the mountains, a comfortable silence cloaking the two demons.

It was not long before they entered the cave that contained Slytherin's locket. At the entrance there was a knife, a stone bowl and in the wall "Blood" was written.

"Not very original, ain't he?"

"Well, he did start his reign of terror at sixteen. They do say that teenagers always think that they are the first ones to do something."

Yuusuke snorted and pricked his finger with the knife, and then he placed his bloody digit on the bowl. A passage opened and the redhead and greenhead both entered the 'safe' for the Horcrux.

The trip on the small canoe, for lack of better term, was filled with comfortable chatter between the two demons. Mainly about their respective territories in the Makai and the annoying (for Yuusuke) political games they have to play. Really, Tommy-boy's little so-called booby-trapped cave of doom was so cliché that they couldn't be bothered by it.

Their little trip ended when they reached an island-inside-a-cave. Like the entrance, there was a bowl, however, unlike its predecessor, it merely contained invisible liquid in it. Thanks to their demon senses, Kurama and Yuusuke were able to see a small object at the bottom of the bowl.

Bingo, they've won the price.

"Five billion yen says that that is poison"

A grunt of amusement. "That's a sucker's bet, Kurama"

"Do you want me to take it, or do you want me to handle the booby-traps that are going to spring right after?"

"How do you know there are going to be booby-traps?"

"I'm the King of Thieves, remember?"

"I'll take the poison, you'll probably know where the infamous booby-traps are before they activate"

The poison hardly bothered the Toushin, namely because of all the antibodies his body had from all of his Reikai Tantei escapades. The Youko was aware of this, and he was glad. That way, Yuusuke would be conscious to watch the silver kitsune in his element and be amazed. It was the Youko way of wooing their suitors: show off your skills in front of your intended and make them come to you.

Halfway through the drinking of the transparent liquid, Yuusuke had to do a semi-transformation to keep the worst effects of the poison at bay. So he did learn a little bit about caution. More like, it was drilled into his head by Raizen and Genkai. Same difference.

Soon the necklace was in plain view and the Toushin snatched it from the bowl. Immediately, a bunch of Inferi had begun to come out of the ground.

Of course, they were no match for the demons.

Kurama made quick work of them while the green haired hanyou watched. A Rose Whip Slash here, a Petal Attack there, and the Inferi fell like flies in front of repellant.

The jinkitsune was rather put out. Really, one would think that the oh-so-fearsome Inferi would be more of a challenge. Kurama may have the infuriating habit of making his death matches look easy, but this was ridiculous.

Wait, oh, nevermind, the Inferi he just defeated are coming back for round two. 'Hmm, I wonder if they will make a decent meal for my Death Tree'

'**Who knows, why don't we find out? At the very least it should be entertaining for Yuusuke**'

'Is it me, or is Kurama showing off? Nah, poison must be affecting me more than I though. Kuso, why didn't otou-sama warn me that my body was still weak against poisons!'

Above the heavens, Koenma and Raizen were watching as the Youko fed the Inferi to his Death Tree, the zombies seemed quite tasty to the flora.

"When is that son of mine going to realize that he's being courted?" asked an amused Raizen while raising his eyebrow.

"How much you want to bet that Yuusuke'll get his head out of his ass after Aiji gets her first boyfriend."

"There's no need to exaggerate, Koenma, Yuusuke isn't _that_ big of an idiot" pause "though some might beg to differ"

"Then it's a bet then?" Koenma just couldn't pass up the opportunity, not at all. If previous events are any indication, he is weak against temptation. Thank goodness that he won't be the official God of Death for another millennia. Otherwise we'd be doomed.

"With what?"

"If I win, you have to become my personal assistant for as long as I want. That includes taking care of this blasted paperwork"

Raizen gave him one of those 'now you're just being a lazy bastard' looks that the Reikai Tantei team always gives him, "Fine, but if I win, then I have the right to visit my children, give them tips, train them and, if necessary, possess them like I did to Yuusuke with his fight against Sensui." The look on Koenma's face was priceless. If the Junior Shinigami lost, then he'd have a shit load of paperwork to complete for Raizen's 'request'.

"Not backing out now, aren't we toddler bitch?" Raizen taunted in that condescending manner that Yuusuke and Aiji often used around Koenma, particularly when he gives them impossible missions or slacks off on paperwork. 'Maybe some things are genetic after all'

"Of course not! And stop calling me a toddler!" 'Please let Aiji-chan get a boyfriend soon'

Though considering who we're talking about, the chances of Aiji getting a guy friend her own age that doesn't wet himself at the sight of her and/or isn't intimidated by her are rather low in the first place.

* * *

Aiji sneezed just as she was going to pop a mochi to her mouth. 'Someone must be talking about me. Wonder if it's Blondie or Red'. She and the girls were eating their snacks before they had to go to Potions class. 

"Bless you, Aiji. You're not coming down with something aren't you?" Daphne touched the back of her hand to Aiji's forehead. So she was the mothering type, what can you do about it?

"Nah, someone's probably talking about me" before her non-Japanese speaking friends could open their mouths, Lythiel answered "It's a Japanese superstition. If you sneeze for no reason, then that means that someone's talking about you" then the petite blonde gave the forest haired girl a teasing smirk "Wonder if we should get you a handkerchief for the day?"

"Ah, shove it ao-gan. It's not like kicking Blondie's bodyguards' asses' any big deal. And Red needed a serious kick in the ass and you know it"

"Yeah, except that you're Alyssa Potter, the Girl-Who-Lived, and everyone's favorite Light Side poster child" Sally-Anne added, "Even if it's wrong to expect an eleven year old to save the world, that's what people have been doing for years. As far as they're concerned, you're giving them mixed signals"

"I'm living my life like I want to. What's so confusing about that? It's not like I didn't make it clear that I hate snobs, rich bitches and prejudiced bastards."

"Firstly, you're a Slytherin, a so-called Death Eater in the making" Daphne rolled her eyes as she said this, "As far as they're concerned, if you end up in this House, then you're a Junior Dark Wizard who hates muggles and everything associated with them"

"Who came up with that rule?" Aiji snorted, "Just because Hebi-jii-san had a couple of issues with muggles doesn't mean that all the Slytherins are like that"

"And I sincerely doubt that Salazar Slytherin would have appreciated being called Old Man Snake" Lythiel responded with a laugh as she nibbled the last sakuramochi, the little pink cakes had become her new favorite snack, "Even though some people might argue that Slytherin had a good reason to hate muggles – because at the Founder's Time witch hunts occurred left, right and center. But that's another story altogether"

"Secondly, you verbally sparred with Draco Malfoy and had beaten his bodyguards without breaking a sweat. The Malfoys have the bad reputation of being in allegiance with the Dark Lord. Therefore, you are giving people the signal that you are their savior because you just went up against a 'Death Eater's son'" Sally-Anne continued.

"Thirdly, by fighting with Ronald Weasley, even though he's the one that started it," 'the prick', "there is also the fact that his family, though poor, is a very influential Light family. Therefore, you are not giving people the impression that you're the Savior of the Wizarding World" Daphne finished the explanation with a bite to her mochi.

"They got those so-called 'mixed signals' just because two fuckers from opposing sides pissed me off? Jeez, you'd think that they've never seen a rebel before"

"The masses of any population and/or country have never been very bright to begin with" Lythiel muttered bitterly, "Just look at the prejudice that everyone has against werewolves. Though, some might say that this is a cake walk compared to the 1840's, where the Werewolf Segregation Act took place"

"I've heard about it" exclaimed Sally-Anne, "wasn't that the law that stated that all werewolves were to be sterilized to 'avoid passing the malady known as lycanthropy to the new generation'?"

"Not just that, Sally" replied Lythiel, "any werewolves found pregnant were either forced to abort or killed on the spot. If a child had a werewolf parent, even if the child didn't 'inherit' lycanthropy, he or she was sterilized or killed in cold blood. It's impossible to 'inherit' lycanthropy anyway, you can only become a werewolf if you are bitten or scratched by one at the full moon"

Funny thing about werewolves is that they are a low level form of Ookami Youkais (4). Suffice to say that Aiji was not impressed as to how her people were treated. "They did what!? Just because some people had the bad luck of being a werewolf's chew toy for five minutes they're treated like rabid animals!?"

Lythiel nodded her head, "The 'Segregation' in the act also meant that werewolves could not go to any wizarding school, get any jobs or even be accepted at a wizarding hospital. That's why so many of them left for the Muggle World and never came back. That's also why Muggles more or less learned of the existence of Werewolves."

"I knew that there was that whole blood war going on around here but this is getting ridiculous! I ain't saying that the Muggle World's all sunshine and daisies but all the same!"

"That's the way the world works Aiji." Daphne's compassionate and mothering voice pacified the Toushin, it kind of reminded her of Yukina-nee's soothing one, "We're not saying this to upset you, it's just that we want you to be careful. At any moment people can turn around and curse you just because you're not their Golden Savior or any such nonsense."

"Feh, I can take care of myself. Besides it's not like it's the first time that some asshole teachers, policemen or whatever want to start shit with me. The worse that they could do is send me to juvie since I'm a minor, but it ain't that bad over there" pause, "Of course, I was only there for a day before ka-san bailed me out"

"You've been to juvie?!" asked a wide eyed Sally-Anne. Sure, Aiji seemed to disregard authority to the point of being an unrepentant rebel, but she never would have pictured her new friend to have once been sent to jail for minors!

"Some bastard police dude decided to send me there when I kicked his son's ass, nevermind that he started it" Aiji shrugged

Before the three witches could react to Aiji's news, the sound of footsteps alerted them that their break was over. Thankfully, they had finished their snacks so no one could bug them about it.

Although, that doesn't mean that Daphne, Lythiel and Sally-Anne won't continue this conversation and possibly ask if Aiji needed help in avenging herself.

Almost as soon as the other students came to the Potions classroom's door, Professor Snape opened it with a bark of "Inside"

Aiji sat down at the back of the class, as per usual. Her three friends had already figured out that Aiji would always sit at the back, regardless of which House side it was on, so didn't say anything as they sat next to her.

As Snape began to roll call, none of the students made a noise. Snape had the ability to command attention, fear and respect from his students without making a single sound. 'Nifty trick' though Aiji with a wry grin.

For some odd reason, he had stopped at Aiji's name, "Miss Potter, our newest… celebrity"

'Wonder what the hell crawled up his ass' Aiji speculated to herself.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making," Professor Snape began. His voice was low and soft but no one in the room would dare not to listen, even those in the back of the classroom caught every word.

"As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses…I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even put a stopper on death—if you aren't as big a bunch of _dunderheads_ as I usually have to teach."

'A hundred diamonds says that he'd use other choice words if he was in another environment.' Aiji mentally laughed at Hiei's "bet".

Despite the fact that Aiji was in Slytherin, Snape was a man of his word. And when he promised himself the other day that he would find out exactly what made Alyssa Potter tick, then by the Spirits was he going to find out what made Alyssa Potter tick.

"Potter!"

Aiji was starting to get a little irritated with people not calling her by her 'real' name.

"What would I get if I added a powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

'The fuck?'

'What did you do _this_ time detective?'

'I'm pretty sure I didn't do anything to him _yet_'

Severus was using the opportunity to get a glimpse of her mind. So Legilimency was considered illegal, big deal! Committing a crime isn't really a crime, it turns into a crime if you get caught.

'Hey asshole, didn't yer mother teach ya that readin' people's minds' rude'. Aiji may never reach Hiei's level when it comes to telepathy, but she knows enough to know when someone is snooping into her mind.

'Potter?!' Snape mentally exclaimed in surprise. Since when did muggle raised children know Occlumency?

'No it's your fairy godmother who came to tell ya that yer conscious died, bakayaro. Now get outta my head before I chop off yer dick right this minute!'

Feeling the girl's anger and the seriousness of her words, Severus was forced to retreat.

Hiei felt a rush of pride. It was a powerful moment, knowing that your violent, hanyou pseudo-imouto was putting a nosy ningen in his place.

It was a good thing that Severus was in shock, because at that moment, Lythiel, who was sitting next to Aiji, discretely passed the velvet haired girl a note with the right answer. Aiji, using the moment to her advantage, used her enhanced sense of sight to look at the note while without giving any inclination that she was cheating.

Japanese schools are ridiculously hard, academic wise. Not to mention exceedingly harsh. Whenever Keiko-nee-chan managed to get Yuusuke and Aiji to participate in a test, and managed to scare them into getting a decent grade, the Urameshi siblings would cheat on said tests.

If you got caught cheating in a Japanese school, well, for the audience's piece of mind let's just say that getting a detention and a zero would be the least of your worries. Hell, the word 'cheating' doesn't exist in the Japanese language! Though, with students like Yuusuke and Aiji, that might change.

Ergo, whenever Yuusuke and Aiji bothered themselves into taking a test and getting a decent grade (read, Keiko bullied them to do it), they cheated and no one was the wiser. Or rather, none of the teachers were able to catch them in the act, nor were they capable of finding any proof.

Hearing Matsumoto-baka-sensei swear under his breath as she had managed to cheat under his nose, again, always made the bothersome act worth it.

"Draught of the Living Death"

"I beg your pardon, Miss Potter?"

"The answer to your question is Draught of the Living Death" insert the Urameshi smartass smirk.

Oh, so that's how the little brat wants to play, huh? "Where would I find a bezoar and what can it be used for?"

'Damn, I can't pass Aiji a note, Professor Snape will notice it for sure' Daphne and Lythiel, who knew the answer, thought. Sally-Anne was thinking of various ways of getting Aiji out of this situation without getting on Snape's bad side. A hand stretching vertically, almost as if it was attempting to reach the ceiling, caught the sapphire-eyed girl's eye and gave her an idea.

Fortunately, that was one of the few things that Aiji knew, namely because Kurama had drilled it into her, if only for the practical uses of the bezoar.

"Ya can find those in the stomach of a goat. It'll cure ya from most poisons." This time it's the Urameshi shit-eating grin.

'If this isn't proof that the fox and the ningen are miracle workers, then I don't know what is'

'Urusai, Hiei-nii. I'm not _that _much of an idiot'

'Do you want the standard answer or the more detailed one?'

"Professor Snape?" Sally-Anne's clear voice and her raised hand interrupted the battle of wills between student and teacher and the mental banter between Hiei and Aiji.

"Miss Perks, what could be so important that you are interrupting an oral exam?", luckily for Sally-Anne, Snape was favorable to his Slytherins and, therefore, only received a slight snarl instead of losing points and receiving a detention for the interruption.

Sally-Anne's face was devoid of emotion and she pointed at Hermione Granger, "it seems to me that someone is eager for her turn"

The bushy brunette blushed (alliteration) but allowed her hand to hang the air.

"Settle down", Snape barked to the Gryffindor, causing her to put down her hand with a fearful tremor. 'Yep, I've still got it' Severus mentally gave himself a pat on the back.

"What Miss Potter" he spat out the word "Potter" like it was a vile curse, "said is correct" 'though I wonder how she cheated', "once a powdered root of asphodel is added to an infusion of wormwood, it becomes such a powerful sleeping draught that it is called the Draught of the Living Death. A bezoar can be found in the stomach of a goat and it will cure you from most poisons. Well, why aren't you all writing this down!?"

Never-mind the fact that it would be impossible to write in verbatim what he said. That wasn't English, that was spit-fire English.

"Yes, Sergeant, sir" Aiji mumbled sarcastically. Sally-Anne, Daphne and Lythiel were the only ones that heard her not-so-flattering comment. Daphne snickered quietly, Sally-Anne subtly smirked, and Lythiel gave in to her silent giggles.

It wasn't long before the students had to pair up to make a potion. Since Sally-Anne and Aiji were the 'Potions Dummies', the quartet decided that pairing the greenhead and the brunette together would not be a good idea.

"Just to warn you guys, I can't even boil water properly. Hell, last time I tried I burned the water" Aiji muttered.

"Is it even possible to burn water?" Lythiel mumbled incredulously.

"Boiling water is the only thing I know how to do" Sally-Anne looked at the blondes for help. She did not feel like going to the Hospital Wing on the first day because she was burned alive in Potions' class.

"How about Lythiel helps Sally and I'll partner with Aiji" Daphne took charge. "Lythiel is more or less at the same level as I am in Potions, so that way none of us fail"

"Just tell me what I have to do and I'll do it." Sally-Anne whispered, glad that at least two of her friends were in their element. "As long as it's not too hard, that is"

"Aiji, Sally, you two get the ingredients while Daphne and I take notes." Lythiel told them, relieved that some of her pre-Hogwarts Potions lessons weren't in vain. When she said that she was going to prove that, even with a low magical core, she could still be a great witch, then bloody Hell she'll make it happen! Even if it means that she has to endure extra hours of study on all the subjects daily!

When the four girls finished their assigned tasks they immediately began to work on the little details.

"Other than boiling water, do you know how to do anything else?" Lythiel asked her wavy-haired partner.

"Not really, no. My talents lie in Transfiguration, Charms, DADA, and History of Magic." Sally-Anne replied to the hard-working blonde.

"How about I chop the ingredients and stir the cauldron, while you boil the water and add the ingredients when I tell you to?" Lythiel suggested.

"You're the boss, Lythiel" Sally-Anne grinned.

Meanwhile, as Daphne started boiling the water she asked her wild-haired companion, "Other than your special talent for burning water," the tall girl snickered at her shorter companion, "is there anything else I should know?"

"I can chop and smash the ingredients if you want," the scarred girl smirked without missing a beat, "according to Keiko-nee, it's a damn good stress-relieving technique." Aiji chuckled "Especially if you have any secret fantasies of murdering someone"

Daphne merely smiled in fond amusement. Although, to be perfectly honest, Aiji was right, chopping things while imagining they are _certain individuals'_ heads is a verrryyyy good stress reliever. The leaf-eyed girl should know, she's been doing that ever since she was seven, mostly imagining it was _Zacharias Smith and Cormac McLaggen's Overgrown Heads_ she was chopping!

Zacharias Smith. Cormac McLaggen. 'What I'd give to murder the little bastards!' Daphne thought viciously, 'Bad enough that the blond arse-kisser doesn't know when to leave Lythiel alone! Oh, no, when the going gets tough he goes to the snob for help!' Daphne's hand holding the knife trembled with barely restrained fury.

To those that bothered to look, Daphne looked like one of those fearful axe-wielding murderers, minus the axe that is. On second though, she looked scarier than the axe-wielding murderers.

The reason as to why she would like nothing more than to gut Smith wasn't a mystery. Neither was the reason why she wanted to strangle McLaggen with his own intestines. It's a simple story really.

Smith antagonizes Lythiel to the point of tears. Daphne teaches Smith a lesson via physical violence. Smith goes crying to his buddy McLaggen. McLaggen throws mud at Daphne's beautiful hair and the radiant champagne locks stayed dirty until a week later. Lythiel finds a potion that will make the drinker have diarrhea for three weeks straight, makes it and discretely slips it into McLaggen's drink.

Conclusion: the boys have become Daphne Greengrass and Lythiel Moon's mortal enemies.

"Ne, midori-gan?" the second shortest member of the quartet interrupted the temperamental blonde's trip down the memory lane. It was her first declaration of war. Her mother was so proud of her!

"Yes Aiji?"

"… Do I even wanna know or is it one of those skeletons in the imaginary closet?"

"I'll just say this: if Zacharias Smith from Hufflepuff or Cormac McLaggen from Gryffindor give you any problems, just remember that it won't be any trouble for me to beat them into a bloody pulp"

"Is it that you want an excuse to beat them into a bloody pulp or is that a sisterly warning?"

"… More of the former than the latter, I guess" Daphne chirped with a bright smile that didn't seem appropriate for the conversation.

The students worked together in silence for the rest of the period, some having successfully completed their potions – namely the Slytherins because Snape was not making them nervous by breathing down their necks like he did with the Gryffindors. Until …

**BOOM!!**

One Iphigenie Longbottom's cauldron was puking out its contents at its owner and her partner, Seamus Finnegan.

Sally-Anne, whom despised potion making with a passion, was not about to let her and Lythiel's hard work amount to nothing because someone else's potion was going haywire; therefore, she scooped a little bit of her potion in a vial and put it in her robes as she and Lythiel got as far away from the possible danger as humanly possible.

"Idiot girl, you put the porcupine quills before removing your cauldron from the fire" Snape snarled callously, regardless of the fact that Iphigenie was barely holding her tears in check due to the burning pain she felt everywhere the potion touched her. As she was the one that took the full blast of the potion, her Irish partner didn't have it as bad.

Daphne felt the stirrings of maternal instincts she used to only have for Lythiel surface up, Iphigenie looked just like Lythiel the first times that she tried to get a potion right without help. Although her blonde friend was better at keeping the tears at bay than the chubby brunette, the resemblance was uncanny.

Lythiel also noticed the similarities between herself and the shy Gryffindor, sure the other girl lacked her conviction to succeed at everything that didn't require a wand but the helpless feeling of being weak, of not being good enough was there in those maroon colored eyes. It was … strange for Lythiel to see someone else wear that expression on their face instead of just seeing it every time she looked in a mirror.

Sally-Anne couldn't help but wince in sympathy as the round faced girl bared the pain she got from potion's burning liquid. There was a reason as to why she wouldn't be caught dead either in a kitchen, a chemistry laboratory, or a potion lab unless if it was absolutely necessary. The brunette could think up of better, less painful ways of dying or getting hurt, _thank you very much_.

Even though Aiji never really was the type of person that pities people that suffer because of their own blunders, however, she remembered that one time when she was six and she tried to make her own lunch as ka-san was off getting drunk somewhere and nii-chan was at school – read: playing hooky – she ended up burning the water she tried to heat up for her noodles and she burned herself too. Her surprisingly sober ka-san had found her and immediately grabbed her and went to the nearest pharmacy to buy anti-boils cream; she did this not only to apply said cream on her daughter's injured body, but to teach her what to do in case it happened again.

Hurt, Iphigenie looked years younger, like an eight-year-old that was hurt and tried to stop the tears. That was Aiji's downfall, she and her nii-chan always were suckers when it came to kids.

Sighting in exasperation at her own softness – though she would never admit it even under torture – Aiji went to Longbottom and Finnegan's table and she placed the anti-boils cream (that her ka-san and Keiko-nee-chan had urged her to bring for potions class) in the injured party's working station.

"What?!" demanded an embarrassed Aiji as everyone, including Snape, where looking at her between shock and outrage. "Getting burned hurts like hell!"

Finnegan, though he was a Gryffindor through and through, was in utter pain and did not feel like braving through it anymore than is absolutely necessary. As a halfblood, he knew how to use some muggle gadgets, and this one he blessfully knew how to use.

The Irish boy took the lotion and smeared it everywhere on his skin (that he could reach) that the potion had touched him.

Iphigenie, though apprehensive that a Slytherin was supposedly helping her and Seamus, was not about to look at a prized horse in the mouth. Copying her housemate, she applied the lotion nearly on her entire face and hands.

"So Potter, not only do you let this incompetent girl hurt herself, but you now have to play the hero as well" snarked Snape, though he did notice the blush of embarrassment on the girl's cheeks as she did her good deed. 'Odd, I know that she's a Slytherin, but she's still the goody-goody Girl-Who-Lived'

"First off, asswipe, I know as much about potions as anyone here can recite Einstein's theory on the fourth dimension by heart and _understand_ it" Aiji hissed like a feline, her knuckles popping and cracking as she flexed them "the only reason mine and midori-gan's potion isn't a mess is 'cause Daphne-chan actually knows what she's doing. Second of all, hero-shmero, you think I actually like being seen as a softy? As if, I have a bloody rep as the number one heartless bitch to protect!"

You know, this entire Stone Silence arriving nearly everywhere Aiji's at is getting annoying. This is going to be one predictable fanfic if this keeps up. Oro…

"Um Professor, it would have been impossible for Aiji to warn Longbottom as she was too far away" Sally-Anne recovered quickly, after being Aiji's friend for a night and a morning, she had gotten used to her friend's rather… forceful and controversial behavior.

"I couldn't tell that there was anything wrong, and I know potions and I was closer to Longbottom's work station" Lythiel added, even if she was going to sacrifice a night at most of detention, still Aiji was a friend and Lythiel shared the infamous Hufflepuff loyalty when it came to her precious people.

"If anyone is to be blamed, it should be the ones nearest Longbottom's table" Daphne said.

'Damn it all. Now some of my Slytherins decide to show House loyalty, and to the wrong person no less!' Severus spied the nearly impeccable female trio of Gryffindors sitting nearest the dunderhead and her equally idiotic partner. As the Gryffindors and Slytherins had a total impair number of students each, and he didn't feel like dealing with the destructive house rivalry so early in the morning and year, he'd allowed one group of three per House.

One among the Gryffindor girls in the threesome was Hermione Granger, the bushy-haired know-it-all that was trying to show off her intelligence in every subject.

A quick Legilimency scan on the three girls showed that Brown was about as interested in her classes as Severus wanted to raise a baby (shudders). The only thing that the blonde twit was interested in was make up, clothes, feminine accessories, fashion, and, spirits forbid, boys ('they're already that age?'). The Indian girl Patil just wanted to get a good enough grade to pass her classes in the next four years so that her parents will allow her to work in an internship at _Inana_ (the wizarding version of _Lord and Taylor_).

Granger, on the other hand, was a smart muggleborn that wanted to prove herself to be as intelligent, if not more, than the purebloods. Severus remembered that the buck-toothed know-it-all had tried to show off her knowledge by raising her hand every time he asked Potter a question. 'Great, another attention seeking Gryffindor, now how did Albus know that I was in dire need of one'

"Granger!" he barked, making the girl in question sit up straight. "Since you were adamant in showing off your knowledge in potions, why didn't you help this imbecile as she was right next to you!?"

"I, well, Professor-"

"Thought she'd make you look good if she royally messed up as she did, eh? Twenty points from Gryffindor!"

Hermione was about to cry at this public humiliation. So far she'd been the one winning her house points, now she was losing them? And for something she wasn't guilty of in the first place! 'This is unfair, this isn't how a teacher is supposed to be!'

"Class dismissed, now scram you incompetent dunderheads." Severus's voice was barely above a whisper, but the effect was instantaneous: the Gryffindors rushed out of there as if Dementors were looking for a good snog, and even a good part of the Slytherins power-walked out of the classroom.

"Oh, and Potter? Detention tonight for your cheek" Snape closed the door with a slam.

"Er, Potter?" a tenor voice with an sweet Irish lilt asked for Aiji's attention, almost unsure if the girl in question would turn to the one speaking.

"Hai?" Aiji spun around and saw Seamus Finnegan and Iphigenie Longbottom approaching her and looking awkward about speaking to a snake, a probable friendly snake, but a snake nonetheless.

"W-we, um, w-want-ted t-to, er, s-say th-thanks" Iphigenie stuttered out her gratitude, unsure if it was welcomed.

"Don't mention it" Aiji groaned, "seriously, don't. I wasn't kidding about protecting my 'heartless bitch' rep"

"Aw, is ickle Aiji-chan embawassed becawse she did a good deed?" Daphne couldn't help it, Aiji looked too cute trying to act tough and being embarrassed because she did something nice. She even pinched the shorter girl's cheek for good measure.

"Daphne-nee-chan!" Aiji exclaimed in embarrassment as she flushed, her face turning a red color that could compete with Kurama's hair.

Lythiel merely rolled her eyes, she was more than used to Daphne's more demonstrative and affectionate nature. Her leaf-eyed best friend was brave and bold, and Lythiel had no doubt that if not for her cut-throat, calculating and vindictive side, Daphne would've been placed in Gryffindor.

"You're embarrassing her, Daff. There's no need for Aiji-chan's face to compete with the Weasley red hair"

Sally-Anne was the only one of the Slytherin quartet that found this conversation twilight-zone worthy. These were Gryffindors, they were not supposed to joke around in front of them. 'It's over, kaput, bye-bye my beautiful inheritance. My money, my mansion, my connections, all gone because I'll be found out-'

"Um, w-we w-wanted t-to g-g-g-gi-ve this b-back" Iphigenie held out the lotion that Aiji had given her and Seamus in potions, her hands shaking as she peered at the strange girls that weren't following the norm at Hogwarts.

"Thank you" Sally-Anne took it, hoping to get as far as humanly possible from the Gryffindors before the other Slytherins stated interrogating them.

"Next time I won't help your pathetic asses when you screw up your potion" the witnesses to this event would have believed Aiji, if it weren't for the blush on her face.

This time taking absolutely no offense, Seamus just grinned his trademark Irish grin at the pretending-to-be-a-bitch-softy. "Sure you won't, and I know exactly what Einstein was talking about every time someone mentions the fourth dimension"

"Urusai!" Aiji barked.

"That means 'shut up' in Japanese" Lythiel chimed.

"Potter, Greengrass, Moon, Perks! What the fuck do you think you're doing consulting with these Gryffindors!" the last word was spat out like it was a worm in one's salad. Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Pansy Parkinson, Millicent Bulstrode, and Stacie Davis appeared from the right corridor.

"Not just any Gryffindors either" Draco sneered, "but also a halfblood nobody" Seamus met the platinum blond's glare dead on, "and an incompetent, crybaby, almost-squib disgrace" Iphigenie whimpered silently and flinched. Lythiel also winced at the words "almost-squib disgrace", but recovered so quickly that no one in Draco's "gang" noticed.

"_Draco, ne crois-tu que t'exagères un peu? Ils ont seulement remercie Aiji pour son aide en potions. Mais tu dois aussi te rendre compte qu'on ne fait pas partie de ton groupe de débiles._" Sally-Anne subtly looked down on Stacie and Pansy. "_De plus, souviens-toi qu'Aiji peut vaincre Crabbe et Goyle toute seule sans même utiliser de la magie. Elle n'a pas peur de toi ni de tes garde-corps._" (for tanslation look at (5) at the bottom of the page) Sally-Anne's French had a pleasant Lyonnais accent, yet it also held a hidden menacing tone to it. 'Oh, what the hell. I'll just say that I'm playing with my alliances, that Aiji's too much of a wild-card or something. This is one gamble that I can't lose'

"_Perks, et moi qui croyais que t'étais une fille rusée. Tu vas te risquer dans une alliance avec Potter, une salle fillette au sang-mêlé?_" Draco's cold voice was in his no-nonsense business tone that his father used with powerful associates. His brisk Parisian French seemed to make him all the more menacing.

"_Et qu'est-ce qu'on sait vraiment sur Aiji? Déjà qu'elle n'est pas une Gryffondore mais une Serpentarde comme nous est cause de s'interroger sur ses positions politiques. Ce serait vraiment con si je perds une alliance bénéficiaire car je pense au blanc et noir comme les Gryffondores, tu ne crois pas_?" Sally-Anne all but sneered at Draco, acting as if he were an idiot in dire need of help. While on the inside 'Say as much bullshit as you can in one go, but don't let him trap you at all. Shit, Shit, don't let him figure me out!'

"_De plus, je t'en souviens que je suis une Perks, donc je suis cent pourcent neutre et objective en cette guerre des sangs_." Sally-Anne straightened her spine and rose to her full height, holding her head up in pride, reminding Draco that she too was of a Noble and Most Ancient House, even if she was neutral in the war.

"_Dans le cas de Longbottom: crois-tu vraiment qu'elle est aussi pitoyable et débile en réalité? Ne crois-tu qu'elle songe de tuer à ta tante chaque jour? Imagine-toi Draco, Longbottom peut être une fille prodigue qui masque ses talents pour que ta chère tante et touts tes familières la surestiment. Quand sa farce arrive au dernier acte, son rôle de sotte sera desséché et elle aura sa vengeance. Méfie toi toujours des apparences et des illusions, combiens des sots que tu connais sont des sots en réalité?_" Sally-Anne tilted her head towards Vince, Greg, Millicent, and Stacie as if to prove her point.

Draco's eyes widened at what Sally-Anne was implying, taking a second look at Potter and Longbottom.

With Potter, yes he had to agree with Perks that the green-haired witch could not be categorized as a goody-two-shoes that will blindly follow the Light Side. If nothing else, the only alliances Potter openly had were those with Perks, Moon and Greengrass; and those were friendship-based alliances. She never made any kind of political stand, if nothing else she seemed to be detached of the whole blood war going on. Yes, Potter was a wildcard, Draco was willing to agree to that.

But Longbottom, her little incompetent self being an act is about as probable as Severus being secretly fond of neon pink (not happening). He was about to scoff at the very idea, but then again his self-preservation instincts took control: What if Perks was right? What if this wasn't just Perks being over cautious and paranoid as that family was wont to be?

If Longbottom was secretly planning to off Bellatrix, Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange in the most painful way as humanly possible, then there was going to be a problem. While Lucius and Draco wouldn't give a flying fuck either way, so long as they themselves weren't being targeted by a desperate Gryffindor mastermind looking for blood, they didn't care what happened. On the other hand, Narcissa would get her husband and son mixed up in her revenge on the one that killed her sister. While Narcissa and Bellatrix weren't that close nor did they get along that well, Narcissa would try to avenge her sister out of Black pride.

Draco thought that family pride was all well and good, but sometimes there are limits. Besides, Bellatrix was probably completely insane by now due to Dementor exposure without any type of shield against it nor any chocolate at hand.

"What are you saying to my Drakie, you hussy!" Pansy cries, her nostrils flaring angrily at the fact that Sally-Anne had all of Draco's attention. Draco was going to be Pansy's fiancé if her father had any say in it.

Aiji's green eyes darkened in a sinister way "If yer gonna piss on Blondie like bitch marking her territory do it in the pets zone please."

"Parkinson does resemble a bitch doesn't she? First time I saw her I thought that she was a poor dog that wasn't transfigured completely into a human" Daphne laughed nastily.

"With her upturned, pug nose she resembles a bulldog." Lythiel commented lightly, her cerulean eyes sharp like steel "It matches her Gryffindor-worthy brashness, don't you think?"

"It's not just her nose, I could swear to my ancestors' graves that she has some wrinkles under her eyes and the back of her neck" Sally-Anne threw some of her own sophisticated, and French, bitchiness right back at Pansy. "Really Parkinson, make up is not just to emphasize your desirable traits, if you have any, it's also used to cover up or get rid of unwanted blemishes. Oh, and you might want to use a different skirt, dear, this one shows off your rather thick thighs, and really, those look bad with a flat chest."

Draco, Vince and Greg, being the proper masculine cowards that they were, stepped away from the cat fight.

Seamus, whom had at least three older female cousins that got into cat fights all the time, was not a masculine coward and was itching for the right time to make fun of the haughty bitch, if she was Malfoy's girlfriend all the better.

Iphigenie didn't like confrontations at all, but she didn't want to move and make herself a target for these sharp tongues. If she were a boy, she'd be joining Malfoy and his bodyguards in the masculine cowards' corner. So she stepped slightly behind Seamus, almost as if to hide behind the Irishman. However, some hidden part of her was pleased to note that one of her childhood tormentors was finally on the receiving end of an insult.

Pansy looked torn between wanting to cry, wanting to cover her supposedly thick thighs, and wanting to hex the quartet in front of her, if there was one slur that could always get under her skin was the fact that she had a pug face. So far, the four girls had managed to insult her more than anyone else had been able to before.

Stacie was also torn. She didn't know if she should comfort her leader Pansy or if she should stay in the shadows, no way was she risking the wrath of Potter, not after she had sent Vince and Greg to the Hospital Wing.

Millicent was the only one of the trio that knew exactly what she wanted to do: crush the bones of the ones responsible for hurting Pansy.

Aiji stepped in front of her friends and gave Millicent a level three #45 Urameshi Death Glare. This was one of her weaker ones that translated as 'if you even think about decking me then the next color you'll see as you wake up is hospital white', these are usually used for the weak ningens that think a ten-year-old girl is an easy pushover.

Millicent was rather proficient at reading Death Glares. That was the usual way that she and her fellow bodyguards interacted. The stocky and tall girl gave her fiercest Death Glare at the hanyou, but it had little effect since to Aiji that was a weak level two glower at best.

Millicent clenched her fist and kept on advancing on the shorter girl. She was going to start by hitting the no-good tomboy on her boyish face.

**SLAM!! CRACK!!!**

"Ahhh, shit" Millicent breathed, painfully and slowly removing her hand from the bronze forehead, cradling it as she felt the broken bones on her once fisted hand.

Aiji snorted, she had a hard head from all of the beatings it had taken from training to youkais, but come on! She didn't even have to use reiki or youki to toughen her skin enough in order to break Bulstrode's hand.

Wizards were pathetic, Aiji'd received worse from nerds her age.

"You call that a punch?" Aiji scoffed. She raised her own hand and formed a fist. "This is how you properly deck someone in the face"

**WHAM!!! SLAM!!!**

Aiji had hit Millicent only enough to knock the girl off her feet; she didn't expect the coffee-haired bodyguard to fly to the wall, slam into it, and be knocked unconscious.

'Even Kurama-nii's ningen step-brother, Shuuichi, can take more damage than that,' of course Shuuichi had once been interested in judo, if only so he could impress the most feared girl of his age group (guess who), and hopefully be able to get rid of bullies himself.

"That's the second time in one day that you've sent someone to the hospital, Aiji" Sally-Anne noted wryly, "is this going to become the norm and, if so, should I prepare excuses and reasons for the Professors?" the sarcasm wasn't as biting as could've been. Mostly because the mahogany-haired girl was rather amused by what happened.

"Who cares about that Sally!" Daphne exclaimed cheerfully, happy that her friend wasn't hurt and got payback, "Aiji, you have got to teach me how to do that!"

"Oh no" Lythiel sighed, "Daff, you can already beat someone up physically and magically"

"Not to the level that Aiji does"

"I'll teach you midori-gan" Aiji grinned teasingly, "One question: how much?"

"How much what?"

"How much are you willing to pay for the lessons?"

Sally-Anne, Lythiel and Daphne just laughed, and even Draco's lips quirked up in amusement.

"Yeah, they're having a good laugh, but what about us? We're the ones that have to fight that monster" muttered Vince.

"Why do you think I never signed up to be a bodyguard despite the perks? I want the ruddy choice to save my own skin" retorted a sardonic Stacie.

Seamus turned to Iphigenie, whom was more flabbergasted than he was, "You know Iphigenie, maybe I should have asked the hat to put me in Slytherin" he whispered.

"What!?" the mousy-haired girl squeaked.

Sky-blue eyes twinkled in amusement as Seamus said "For the free entertainment, of course!"

* * *

(1) Saperlipopette: it's the French version of saying "oh, shit!", only it's much more polite. 

(2) Vieille salope: vieille means old, and salope is a way of saying bitch in the sense that the person insulted is a whore. Therefore it means "old whore"

(3) yaro: asshole

(4) Ookami Youkai: Wolf Demon

(5) Sally-Anne and Draco's conversation:

Sally-Anne: Draco, don't you think you're exagerating a little? They only came to thank Aiji for her help in Potions. But you also have to be aware that we are not a part of your gang of female weaklings. Also, remember that Aiji can beat Crabbe and Goyle all alone without using any magic. She's not scared of you or your bodyguards

Draco: Perks, and here I thought that you were a cunning girl. You're going to risk an alliance with Potter, a dirty halfblood girl?

Sally-Anne: And what do we really know about Aiji? Already the fact that she's not a Gryffindor but a Slytherin like us is cause enough to ask ourselves about her political positions. It would be incredibly stupid if I lose a beneficial alliance because of black and white Gryffindor way of thinking, don't you think so?

Also, need I remind you that I'm a Perks, therefore I am neutral and objective in this blood war.

In Longbottom's case, do you really think that she's that pitiful? Don't you think that she dreams of killing your aunt everyday? Imagine Draco, Longbottom could be a prodigy that masks her talents so that your dear aunt and all of your family will underestimate her. When her farce reaches its final act, her role of the fool will be shed and she'll have her revenge. Always bewry of appearances and illusions, how many fools that you know are really fools?

(6) For those of you that are wondering why I made Neville into a girl, remember the prophecy in OotP? Well in that case, if I make Harry into a girl, then Neville should be turned into a girl too, otherwise the prophecy would be fucked up.

(7) About the lapses of Japanese in Aiji's speech patterns, remember that she only had two months to learn English and Magic, and that a translation spell is already at least a third year spell. Aiji may be good with ki, but magic is still a slightly different branch that she's only resently discovered. So any lapses in her speech are due to her inexperience with mahou ('magic' in Japanese).


	5. Business deals and Confessions, oh my!

Right, how many pitchforks do I have this time? (looks around) Eheh, well, I may have become lazy this summer BUT this chappie's still long! Updates will still be slow, bt the chapters will be long I promise (waves a white flag)

Sally-Anne: (snorts) How can they not be long when you work on them on-and-off every month?

Lythiel: You know, even with your talents (if you have any), laziness will lead you to ruin

Daphne: When are WE going to have our limelight, huh? Even if you don't want us to be Mary-Sues it's still unpleasant to be wallpaper!

Aiji; Yeah! And I want some real action already! And treasure too!

Ano, right, we'll get right into that soon. SO on with the story!

* * *

"You know bishoujo-chan, if it weren't for the fact that your thoughts were ridiculously loud, I would have bought that entire 'ice bitch' act like Blondie did" Aiji commented casually.

Sally-Anne paled and her eyes widened to the proportion of dessert plates. "Y-you know gulp Legilimency?"

None of the girls had mentioned anything about what she had said to Draco in French. Although, Sally-Anne suspected that Lythiel understood every word in the dialogue she had with the blond wizard. So far, the shortest member of the quartet had kept her mouth shut, but the suspicious, almost acidic, glances the golden-haired girl kept on casting at the brunette clearly spoke for themselves: once they were alone, Sally-Anne had better have a good excuse or she was a dead woman.

Aiji chuckled, "Not really, no. I didn't read your mind, I kind of felt you mentally hyperventilating. Oh, and I heard you particularly yell something about bullshitting Blondie as much as you can without letting him trap ya" the forest-haired girl just grinned at Sally-Anne "Great job in fooling him, by the way, you even managed to fool ao-gan here" she jerked her head towards a now flushed and apologetic Lythiel, "ever considered being an actress, bishoujo-chan?"

"Er, no, not really…" Sally-Anne blushed at the praise, but she also wondered if the girls were going to question her motives for lying to Draco. 'And Aiji's either a low level Empath or a natural Legilimens, damn, got to watch what I think'

"Don't worry, I don't make it a habit to nose around other people's minds. Your emotions were just extra loud that time, it'd have been impossible to ignore them."

"So does that mean you're an Empath? You know, since you felt Sally's emotions instead of her thoughts." Daphne asked.

'And what is the point in taking that ace off your sleeve early?' Hiei reprimanded Aiji, really, his Toushin imoutou was just as bad as Yuusuke, they were both too trusting.

'Four heads are better than one, Hiei-nii. Besides, if I'm gonna stay here for longer than a year then I might as well let 'em know little by little. After all, can you see me keepin' the Reikai a secret from people that I consider friends?'

'You're too trusting chibi-tora, just remember that if any of these ningens think about backstabbing you that it won't be any trouble for me to torture, then kill them. I'll hide the evidence afterwards.'

'… You know Hiei-nii, that sounded suspiciously a lot like what midori-gan told me about those two guys she wants to kill'

'Hn, she's rather interesting, I'll admit, for a human'

"Aiji" Daphne waived a hand in front of Aiji.

"Oh, gomen" Aiji apologized "ano sa, what was the question again?"

"Daphne asked if you were an Empath, otherwise known as a person that can feel other people's emotions instead of reading their thoughts, unless if they were particularly loud like Sally-Anne's were" Lythiel answered, the blonde wondered if Aiji was even conscious of the fact that it was a rare ability what she could possibly have.

"Nah, I got this because I train a lot" Aiji grinned.

"What do mean by training? You mean you trained to learn Legilimency?" Sally-Anne asked, amazed that someone so young had mastered the art of Legilimency. 'Maybe I should learn that and Occlumency too. They're both useful skills to have.'

"Not that either, I meant that after years of training in martial arts, and with a friend of mine that happens to be a telepath, I can kinda feel the basic emotions of people. You know if someone's a threat or not" Aiji gestured with her hands, trying to explain her ability as best as she could.

"A telepath? Aiji I thought you said that you didn't know magic existed until you got your letter" Sally-Anne caught on to that little tidbit.

"I didn't, Hiei-nii ain't exactly magical, he never exactly made things float with a wand, if you get what I mean" Aiji said. 'Never said anything about the Jao Ensatsu Kokoryuuha or the Jagan'

"You're losing us Aiji" Lythiel said, perplexed, "Why don't you explain this to us from start to finish?"

"Okay, have any of you seen the anime DragonBallZ?" Aiji asked, expecting to get a negative answer from her pureblood comrades, and was surprised to see a glimmer of understanding in Sally-Anne's eyes before it was masked. Shrugging, she figured that it had something to do with her 'ice bitch' act, so she might as well act as if she hadn't seen it. "Okay, how about I show you"

Checking to see that no one was coming, and getting the 'okay, it's safe' from Hiei, Aiji concentrated just a little in order for her youki not to mix with her reiki for a second, then created a small sphere of green reiki resting on the palm of her hand.

The brunette and the two blondes reeled back in shock. 'What the blue hell is going on here?!' was the general thought.

Then the sphere dissipated. "That's what a master is capable of doing. It's not magic, it's reiki, or …um … how does it translate?"

"Spiritual energy" Lythiel translated automatically, too shocked to do anything other than take the information in.

"Right, spiritual energy. As I said, it's not magic, Chijinfuun, er … I mean mun- no, mugg, well you know, non-magic wielding people are able to use it" Aiji said, forgetting how to say muggle in English.

"Wait, you mean to tell me that an ordinary muggle can create what you just did?!" Daphne repeated what Aiji said, "That's impossible!"

"I didn't say that _anyone_ can do it, just that martial art masters are able to" Aiji clarified, "and, what do you know, the majority of martial art masters are muggles" 'Or Psychics, but they're not considered as magical either so I'm not lying'

"So where does this spiritual energy come from? If muggles that don't have even a drop of magic can do it then it has to come from _somewhere_, right?" Lythiel asked, intrigued that there was a different way of manipulating energy that had nothing to do with magic. 'Maybe I can replace my magic with this spiritual energy.'

"Oh, that, it comes from your life energy." Aiji explained, a plan forming in her mind, "everyone has life energy, otherwise we'd be dead. Anyhow, it's mostly linked with your physical state and with your emotions. Can't have one without the other."

"Is that why the only ones that can do this spiritual energy are martial art masters? Because they're in good physical shape?" Sally-Anne asked, she had to admit that she was shocked that maybe her favorite series wasn't that far off from reality.

"Pretty much, yeah. Although, I suspect that physical power could also help with magic, or at least boost its power." Aiji theorized, "In fact, my reason for telling you guys this is 'cause I've been trying to test the limits of the magic branch. After all, reiki and magic may be different energy sources, but what happens when you combine them?"

"So what you want is for us to help you with the magic branch?" Daphne asked, getting to the heart of the matter, "Just because we're friends doesn't change the fact that we're Slytherins. What's in it for us?" she grinned.

Aiji just laughed, "I though of that, how about I teach you guys martial arts and get you guys to use reiki?" Aiji raised an eyebrow at her companions, "that way we can experiment it together instead of me being the sole guinea pig," she teased, "though, I gotta warn you, I won't go easy on you guys when it comes to training"

"That's it? Experimenting with magic and reiki with three witches that have known about magic since birth: that's all you're getting out of it?" Sally-Anne asked, "you do realize that we are going to benefit more from this deal than you are, right?"

Aiji smirked, glad that Sally-Anne had caught onto that 'good, then I can get this done with in one go. Don't know when, or if, I should tell them about Reikai. Although none of 'em made pro-Voldemort speeches, things could go bad if one of them supports him.'

"The real reason for coming back to the wizarding world" Aiji began, "even though I could've just as easily gone to Tennyo Gakuen back in Japan, nevermind the fact that wizarding England all but abandoned me to my muggle relatives, whom abandoned me in a deserted alley in Tokyo, once I was of no more use." Aiji couldn't stop her voice from getting that sarcastic, biting, bitter edge. Unless if she saw some real proof that the Dursleys were the only choice available, then she was going to forever think like that.

"Anyway, back on track," Aiji started again, "the real reason for coming here is simple: I want to get even with the hebi-teme that killed my folks" Aiji said this with a straight face, as if she were talking about the weather. Now for the girl's reactions.

None of the girls looked as surprised as they would have been had they not spent the day in Aiji's company. But just to be sure…

"So does that mean that you'll fight for the Light Side?" Lythiel asked. Her family was mostly neutral, but if a choice had to be made then of course her father would choose Voldemort. 'Asshole. One of these days, father, you'll get yours.'

"Who plagiarized from Star Wars again?" seeing how the only one that caught her pun but the brunette (who, once again, masked it), Aiji just said "nevermind. And what makes you think I'm gonna follow the side that abandoned me? I'm not here to change the world, I'm just here to get payback"

"What about the entire blood conflict? What are you going to do about that?" Daphne asked.

"I don't have a problem with muggleborns, halfbloods, squibs, muggles or purebloods. But if I do fight for the 'Light Side', then I'm just gonna support a group that thinks it's okay to treat magical creatures like Voldie wants to treat all of the above … minus the purebloods." Aiji did have a good point there.

Sally-Anne let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. 'Good to know that Aiji doesn't have a problem with halfbloods or muggleborns.'

Aiji then grinned, "Besides, it'd be pretty hypocritical of me to hate halfbloods since I'm one and, unless if my mother ain't Lily Potter, then my biological 'ka-san just happened to be a muggleborn. It'd be pretty stupid to make a hate campaign on something that I am"

Daphne just smiled brightly, "Good to know. And don't worry about neither Lythiel or me having a problem with you being a halfblood, just because our families are officially neutral ("or officially on the Dark Lord's side", Lythiel said snidely, disgusted by her own family), doesn't mean that we think it's right to give non-purebloods Hell for no reason"

"And in case you haven't noticed" Lythiel said wryly, "the Dark Side has a problem with squibs. Why do you think I want to be a decent witch even with my meager magical power? The last thing I want is to give my bastard of a father the satisfaction of knowing that he was right, that I won't amount to nothing because I was almost a squib and, therefore, it is okay to kill me" she finished by sneering.

Sally-Anne's relief was immense. 'Wait a minute, Aiji planned this so that we could help her keep her secret.' The brunette smirked, 'four heads are better than one, especially if we're also going to learn how to use spirit energy. Heh, that was pretty sneaky of her.'

Sally-Anne looked at Lythiel and Daphne, from their admission, they wouldn't begrudge her the fact that she was a halfblood. 'Why not take a page from Aiji and let them help me in fooling everyone?'

"That makes two of us, then" Sally-Anne announced.

"What, that you're an almost squib? But you had such an easy time in Transfiguration and you changed the match into a needle on your _fifth_ try!" Lythiel exclaimed.

"I meant that that makes two of our members that are halfbloods." Sally-Anne clarified.

While Lythiel and Daphne were making a very convincing imitation of a goldfish, Aiji just said "Welcome to the club then, had a feeling there was something you weren't telling us"

"Before you two can ask about the bloody Clan, yes they don't know a thing about it. Otherwise papa and me would be out on the streets." Sally-Anne told Lythiel and Daphne.

"Always did find that story of how your dad met your mum rather odd" at Aiji's confused look Daphne elaborated, "The official story regarding Sally-Anne's creation is that Sebastian Perks, Sally's father, fell in love with a poor, but pureblood French witch while on vacation in France. Since they were young they got carried away with their love for each other and Sally was conceived. Sebastian Perks, being the gentleman he was brought up to be, married said witch and was devastated when his wife had died at childbirth in France."

"… And who was stupid enough to fall for such an obvious lie?" Aiji asked.

"Hey! We fell for it too!" Lythiel exclaimed with a mock scowl, "And if I recall correctly, Daphne once thought it romantic, to boot"

Daphne turned red like a tomato but didn't deny it.

"But, wait, what's this about your oyaji and you being out in the streets if your family knows that you're a halfblood?" Aiji asked.

"Just because my family is officially neutral doesn't mean that they're tolerant." The brunette sent a sardonic look at the shorter girl, "Oh, they agree with the Ministry of Idiots that magical creatures should be treated as second class citizens. But they also agree with the Dark Lord when it comes to muggles, muggleborns and halfbloods. The only reason they didn't join him is because they'd rather not choose a side until the war has been won."

"Let me get this straight: if any Perks other than your 'tou-san knows that you're a halfblood, then you'll be disowned and your inheritance goes bye bye."

Sally-Anne nodded.

"And I thought that I had problems" Aiji mumbled. "That explains why you're so jumpy."

"In any case, we have to find a way to keep this information to ourselves, especially the bit about us learning spirit energy" Lythiel said, "somehow I just know that if the Ministry finds us out they'll charge us for using the Dark Arts"

"Ne, ao-gan, last I checked reiki was never considered Dark, never was considered Light either, it's just your life energy." Aiji said.

"How about we put it this way, Aiji" Sally-Anne said, "if the saying "ignorance is bliss" is true, then the Ministry of Magic must be Paradise. And even if we explain it to them until we're blue in the face, they'll still consider it Dark and, therefore, illegal, because they can't control who uses it or how they use it since it's tied to our life energy."

"Not to mention that Parkinson is going to try to make our lives Hell after that post-Potions class incident" Daphne reminded the girls, "so if we're going to do this we have to make sure that if one of us is caught, we won't be able to admit anything even under Veritaserum."

"Where the fuck is pug-girl going to find truth serum?" Aiji mumbled.

Sally-Anne sighed, "The only thing I can think of is an Unbreakable Vow. But aren't those illegal without adult supervision?"

"Sally, committing a crime isn't illegal, it becomes a crime if you get caught!" chirped Daphne.

"Besides, are you three sure you wanna do that?" Aiji asked, "reiki is a secret that not even many muggles know about, only the martial arts masters or others aspiring to be know of it. I think maybe priest or priestesses might also know because of all the meditation that they do." Aiji paused, 'Why not? They're smart girls; they'll figure it out sooner or later', "There's also a couple of things about me that no one besides my family and closest friends know, and I can't tell any of you that, for now, it's classified information. What you should know, though, is that I'm being paid to kill Voldemort, getting payback's a bonus."

'And you're blowing your cover WHY?'

'Hiei-nii, nii-chan couldn't keep being a Reikai Tantei a secret neither from Keiko-nee, Kazuma-nii, or me. And he was older and he wasn't stuck in a boarding school where everything is controlled and loners, especially the powerful and famous ones (yours truly), are watched constantly. They'd figure it out sooner or later, what with me disappearing for training or whatever. This way, I have extra hands and heads to keep the ghoul and his minions off my back'

"Aiji?"

"Nani?"

Lythiel grinned in understanding, "I take it that all the times you were "spacing out" weren't due to homesickness, but to the fact that you're telepathically communicating with someone?"

"'nii-chan wanted to make sure that I was OK" Aiji shrugged, "so Hiei-nii, the telepath of our group, followed me to England to keep an eye on me." She then eyed the girls dryly, "I wouldn't bother with detection charms, if you can make 'em, Hiei-nii can always manipulate his ki to nullify the spell."

Sally-Anne, all of the sudden, started laughing.

"You… haha… y-you just… bwahaha… compromised us!!"

"Um, Sally?" Daphne hesitantly prodded, "is there something that you might want to tell us? Would you like some chamomile tea for the nerves?" 'Or a stiff sedative'

"You mean you don't get it?"

"Huh?" the two blondes asked.

"Heh, I just spilled my guts about my real heritage, Lythiel over here all but told us how much she hates her old man, which would be reason enough for the asshole to kill her for "treason" against the Head of the Family, and it's no secret that Daphne would break someone in half before letting anything happen to Lythiel. So, in other words, we squeal and she'll sing like a canary!" Despite Aiji's intentional or unintentional deception, Sally-Anne gave the diminutive greenhead a salute of respect, "The Hat knew what it was doing after all!"

Aiji grinned in response, "I wasn't planning on that, I figured that my offer of training you guys on spirit energy would suffice. But thanks for the compliment, bishoujo-chan, it's nice to know that other people have figured out that my 'ka-san didn't raise an usuratonkachi."

The diminutive greenhead frowned, then performed the translation spell again.

"So, how does one go about doing these Unbreakable Vows? The book that Keiko-nee and Kurama-nii blackmailed and bullied me to read wasn't clear on the how to do it."

"Am I going to have to bully you into studying, too?" Lythiel raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not the number one delinquent and lazy-ass at Yotsubadai Shogakkou for nothing"

"Anyhow," Daphne interrupted, "How about I do a Vow first and then the rest follow."

Evergreen eyes serious, cream-colored face smooth and soft lips set in a formal frown, Daphne began, "I, Daphne Cliodhna Greengrass, swear on my name and magic to forevermore keep the secrets of Lythiel Adhara Moon, Sally-Anne Jacinthe Perks, and Alyssa Jade Potter, also known as Aiji Urameshi, even under torture or Veritaserum."

Magic the color of evergreen swirled around Daphne until it entered her own body. 'So that's what midori-gan's aura looks like, it's pretty, and fitting' Aiji thought to herself. Bright colors, no matter if the color is cold, warm or neutral; represent strong personalities with borderline arrogance. That fit Daphne to a tee, Aiji didn't know what the tall girl was arrogant about, but the hubris probably wasn't unfounded. After all, Daphne was one of the prettiest girls Aiji had ever seen (including some fetching fox and cat ladies she had seen in the Makai), not to mention that her magic felt strong and she had an impressive mastery over potions.

Daphne smiled, "This is an informal one, but it should suffice incase Parkinson decides to slip Veritaserum into our food"

"Ano, I'll ignore the shock at the fact that I actually have a middle name for now" said Aiji, "but how the fuck DO you know my middle name when I don't even know it?"

"Oh, that, it's normal for purebloods to know other purebloods', or children of other purebloods', full names." Sally-Anne explained, "It was a little social rule that Mavado Malfoy and my bloody 12-great-grandfather William Perks installed to the purebloods. Their reasoning was that that way, it'd be easier to do Unbreakable Vows with other purebloods that we do not know well. Or to properly interrogate someone under Veritaserum since there could be the odd person with the same name, so once asked, said person could just say a lie because there is another person with the same name, therefore they could trick their minds and the potion into thinking that the question is directed at the other person."

'Stalkers, I'm in a society that encourages stalking!' "Yeah but, Cliodhna? Adhara? Jacinthe?"

"Cliodhna means "shapely" in old Irish" Daphne beamed, "nearly all the women of the Greengrass family are famous for their beauty, so every female of Greengrass blood has a middle name pertaining to it" the blonde had an 'of course they do, after all I came from that family, don't you find me beautiful?' aura surrounding her. 'So that's what midori-gan is arrogant about'

Rolling her cerulean eyes, Lythiel merely said "Ignore Daphne, it's moments like these that one would think that she's competing with Parkinson, Malfoy, Davis, and Zabini over whose the most beautiful." Then she added sarcastically, "and my middle name's Adhara because Adhara is the brightest star, second to Sirius, in the constellation Canis Major. Father Dearest has a bit of a god-complex, so of course he wants the best everything."

"Then why didn't he name ya Serious? Yer serious enough as is, ao-gan"

"Because Sirius is a boy's name, and that was a bad pun"

"As for my middle name," Sally-Anne started with a blush on her face, "it's the female, francophied version of Hyacinth. Maman's always been a Greco/Roman mythology buff, and she thinks of the tragic story of Hyacinth and Apollo as romantic, nevermind that Apollo killed Hyacinth in a friendly competition by accident and the only way the almighty god managed to save his lover was to turn him into a flower."

"Yer 'ka-san's pretty morbid, ain't she?" Aiji said with a deadpan expression, "Not only does she name you after someone that was accidentally killed by his lover, but also after a dead guy"

"Why do you think that I'm trying my hardest NOT to live up to my middle name? Even if the hyacinth flower is one of the prettiest flowers and its fragrance is amazing, I do not find it neither romantic nor desirable to be remembered because my lover accidentally killed me. Nevermind that the Hyacinth, no matter what color it is, represents games and sports, and I suck at anything that requires physical strength!"

"Then I should be grateful that my middle name fits my hair and eye color, also I'm tough as the stone! Nyah!"

Lythiel snorted in amusement, "You're forgetting the fact that you're the Girl-Who-Lived, so I suppose that your first name suits your title" Aiji only cocked her head in confusion, "Alyssa is derived from the alyssum flower, in flower language it means "worth beyond beauty", meaning that a person's mind and soul is more beautiful than their bodies, even if the body is gorgeous in it's own right." Lythiel gazed at Aiji with laughing cerulean eyes, "Just by your name alone, people have been speculating that you'd be a gorgeous girl with the body of a goddess and the gentle soul of an angel!"

Wizarding World's View of what Alyssa Potter should look like:

A feminine silhouette stood near a holly tree, the rays of the sunset giving the girl an ethereal glow. She was a petite beauty with evergreen waterfalls for hair and innocent verdant eyes on delicate features, the lightning bolt scar on her forehead made her look even cuter. She was one of those girls that was unaware of her loveliness, her simple turquoise sundress with indigo embroidery emphasized her full, perky and ample breasts. Her long, endless white legs were covered to the calf by the ribbons of her sandals; her tiny waist made her hips seem rounder and wider (perfect for childbirth) and her derrière was nicely rounded and small. The exquisite vision of feminine perfection was surrounded by alyssum and lily (after her mother of course) flowers; both floras represented her perfectly: the alyssum flower for her angelic soul and mind and the lily for her purity…

"OI!" chibi-Aiji barked, interrupting the description of a Mary-Sue masquerading as her, "Dude, if a girl like that actually exists and is for real, then I'll eat my shoe! And what's up with the flowers!?"

--> Real description of Alyssa Potter:

Alyssa Potter, the real one, was a girl of short stature with a boyish face. Her hair was a mess, with some tangles here and there, and put up in a high ponytail as a last ditch (lazy) effort to control it. She wasn't that well endowed, barely a pair of bumps graced her chest instead of the fabricated big jugs the Wizarding public thought she had. She usually prefers to sit down, because she looks taller since her torso is big, and she has annoyingly short legs that she hopes will catch up with her torso after a couple of growth spurts. The only impressive thing about her body is that it is incredibly muscular for her age, but that only makes it easier for others to mistaken her for a boy. Her eyes were pretty wide, like her brother's, but not in an innocent goo-goo-eyed kind of way. They are warm among friends, but they usually easily betray her cruel streak, nasty temper and dark sense of humor. The scar on her forehead, though not easily noticeable due to her green bangs, only made her face seem fiercer, especially when she scowled.

"See the difference people!" chibi-Aiji bellowed as she tapped a pointer at the real description of her.

On with the story:

Aiji merely raised a sardonic green eyebrow and pointed towards her body. "Muscular, hell yes. Athletic, what'd ya think? But yer classical epitome of feminine beauty? The fuck have these people been smoking! My tits are about the same size as when I was eight, I have less curves than my 'nii-chan has, and if I wear 'nii-chan's old clothes, with my hair up, and speak like I usually do, I get mistaken for a GUY!"

It was true, whenever Aiji got a little sadistic and ticked off at the stupid, asinine, pompous popular girls that like to snicker behind their hands at the 'uncute, delinquent tomboy', Aiji would dress like a boy. Why, do you ask? Because while generally good girls can't stand bad girls, they soil their panties over bad boys. Sexism at its best ('thank Enma that Keiko-nee has about as much in common with those bitches as she has with a fish'). So she'd dress like a boy, and she came off as a pretty cute looking boy, always gave herself a different name outside of school, added 'ore' instead of 'boku' to her speech and the girls had crushes on her. Then, when the dumbshit girls started asking her for dates or proclaiming their so-called undying love – more like undying lust and quixotic, fairytale daydreams – she'd either go out with them once then dump 'em, or she'd just call them ugly and make 'em miserable.

Of course, Keiko-nee would always hit her over the head and scold her for such underhanded, crass and heartless bullying. Hey! She only did it to the camel fucking whores that threw buckets of shit at her directly or behind her back! It's just that those types of girls are about 90 of her grade, nevermind the whole school! Aiji always made it a point to never pull that stunt to the girls, and guys that were firmly stuck in the closet, that never did anything to her or ignored her.

"In that case, I'd say 'nii-chan and 'ka-san named me better than James-tou-san and Lily-ka-san. The name 'Aiji' means 'son'"

Oh, hello there Stone Silence! And here I went and thought that we wouldn't see you in this chapter!

"B-but I thought son was 'musuko'!" Lythiel stuttered.

"It is, but you use 'musuko' to say 'this is my son', for example. 'Aiji' is 'son' in the name sense." Seeing the abstract question marks, Aiji decided to elaborate, "The name 'Goro' means 'fifth son', does it have anything that resembles 'musuko' in it?" the threesome shock their heads, "That's the same thing with the name Aiji, only it just means 'son', and 'Aiji' can both be used in normal speech and as a name; while 'musuko' is only used in normal speech." There were certain things that only those that have lived in the country/with the culture of a certain language can know, 'Even ao-gan didn't know that, and I bet you she studied nihongo for years.'

"But Aiji, unless if there's something you are in dire need of confessing, you're a girl!" Daphne exclaimed, 'why would any girl deny her femininity?'

"Oh that! 'Ka-san was drunk when 'nii-chan found me, and 'nii-chan was only six at the time, so when 'ka-san mistook me for a boy, 'nii-chan just called me Aiji. 'Nii-chan never really was that creative with names, neither am I for that matter"

"Aiji, I don't even want to know what kind of teasing you went through throughout school" muttered Sally-Anne, "I don't even want to know your brother's future children's names either, poor sods."

"Any shit I got I gave back ten-fold" Aiji snickered, then she proceeded to tell her friends about her revenge in the form of crossdressing.

"Aiji! That was unbelievably heartless of you! How could you do that to young, innocent, impressionable, daddy's little rich girls!" Daphne cried, her shimmery green aura surrounding her, making her appear like a scary, pretty demon. 'Sugoi, nice trick'

Then, Daphne's expression became one of sinful glee, "That is so amazing! We should SO do that to Parkinson and any other bitch that messes with us! Oh! You can be my date whenever I can't find a sane male that would want to bask in my beauty."

Aiji leered perversely, "Yeah, I can't see why. You're damn gorgeous as is, and from the looks of things, you're gonna get a nice pair of jugs and legs later on" 'I wonder if I can convince her to experiment later on' Insert Urameshi Perverted Grin.

Instead of being offended, Daphne merely preened at the praise. So the champagne-haired girl was vain and a bit arrogant about it, it's not like Draco isn't, and he still has a large fanbase. Feh, still with the sexism? Hmph.

"Daphne, don't tell me you're still trying to steal the Slytherin Princess title from Parkinson?!" Lythiel moaned, 'This is going to cut down my studying and practicing time, I just know it'

"I already am!"

"Don't you think the title's too troublesome for all the work you need to do to get it" Sally-Anne groaned.

"Right, we've gone way off track," Lythiel reminded before Daphne could respond, "Aiji, Sally, and me need to do our own Vows." 'Here goes nothing'

"I, Lythiel Adhara Moon, swear on my name and magic to forevermore keep the secrets of Daphne Cliodhna Greengrass, Sally-Anne Jacinthe Perks, and Alyssa Jade Potter, also known as Aiji Urameshi, even under torture or Veritaserum"

Lythiel's aura was surprising to Aiji, it was a soft amethyst purple color. Aiji expected it to be another bright, shimmery green, since that's usually the color of hope or for those that have an affinity for the sciences like Daphne. After all, to continue to work hard, even when the odds are against her, shows a hopeful personality in a person. 'But then again, didn't ba-chan say that purple represents determination.' That fit Lythiel more than hope did. 'I can't believe I'm saying this but, thank Kami that ba-chan drilled aura colors and their meanings into mine and 'nii-chan's heads.'

Sally-Anne eyed Aiji, hoping that the greenhead will go first. Hey, they may be friends, but her inheritance was at stake here! 'Oh, no! My future is colored Gold, as in galleon gold! I'll do anything to keep my inheritance; blackmail, murder… even sex appeal!'

Aiji, instead of being offended, merely grinned in understanding, "Don't worry, if it was my inheritance at stake, I wouldn't even trust my nii-chan," pause, "though, knowing him, he'd probably take 75 percent and leave me 25 percent. But he'd still pay for my expenses, though."

Aiji stopped rambling enough to ask, "What name should I use for the Vow? Technically I don't consider myself as Alyssa Potter"

"No but since your real name is Alyssa Potter, and that is how at the very least the Ministry will refer to you by, and the Veritaserum will force you to answer any question asked of you; yes you should use your original name for the Vow," Sally-Anne answered, "Although, it should be common knowledge at Hogwarts by now that you favor the name Aiji Urameshi, instead of Alyssa Potter, so at least Parkinson will try to trap you with that name under Veritaserum." At Aiji's incredulous glance, Sally-Anne nodded, "The secret powers of the Hogwarts' Grapevine, also known as gossip, never ever underestimate its power"

'Actually, this is the best way that you can hide your knowledge of the Reikai, even under truth serum. You just have to word it right.'

'Hai'

"I, Urameshi Aiji, Alyssa Jade Potter, swear on my magic, my reiki, and my honor to forevermore keep the secrets of Daphne Cliodhna Greengrass, Lythiel Adhara Moon, Sally-Anne Jacinthe Perks, and Reikai even under torture, death, Veritaserum, and interrogation."

Aiji's aura, like Daphne's, was also a bright green. However, instead of being shimmery, with pretty sparkles around like her tall friend's, Aiji's aura was the green equivalent to sky blue. Though, it did resemble a bit the Avada Kedavra curse a bit, it wasn't that color exactly. It didn't surprise Aiji one bit, after all, she was pretty good friends with the god of death… And she was pretty arrogant about her strength, her reiki, and youki. But, hey! She was probably one of the strongest fighters in the school!

"I take it that this Reikai is the one who ordered you to kill the Dark Lord" Sally-Anne stated. Though she wouldn't support that neo-Hitler even if her inheritance was at stake and some creepy Shit Eater was pointing his wand at her, she _did_ have some morals and taboos that she would never change, she was still a Perks and, therefore, had state of the art self-preservation instincts. Usually pissing off a Dark Lord/supporter of said Dark Lord in public was not a good way to survive. Besides, just because she intellectually knows that just by saying his name she won't summon Voldemort from the ninth level of Hell or other such nonsense, but just in case.

"Yep, but that's all I'm allowed to say!"

"Very well then," Sally-Anne took a deep breath, 'might as well keep my own secret too', and began, "I, Sally-Anne Jacinthe Perks, swear on my name, my magic, and my honor to forevermore keep the secrets of Daphne Cliodhna Greengrass, Lythiel Adhara Moon, Alyssa Jade Potter, also known as Aiji Urameshi, and of Sebastian Apollo Perks even under torture, interrogation, and Veritaserum."

Sapphire blue light surrounded Sally-Anne. 'Not surprising, dark colored auras are for secretive people, like Hiei-nii or Kurama-nii, but don't dark blue auras represent laziness too?' Who knows with Sally-Anne, if it weren't for the fact that her thoughts were loud, Aiji would be having an even harder time to read the inscrutable brunette.

"Well, that's that!" Daphne exclaimed, "So, when do we start training, as you put it, Aiji?"

"How about early in the morning, before anyone is awake?" Lythiel offered, "The professors will be doing patrols at night because that's when they expect the students to break curfew, but early in the morning they will be asleep due to their late night patrols."

"Good idea, Ly!" Daphne said, "There isn't a morning curfew either so if we're caught they can't do a thing to us, ingenious!" she beamed at her best-friend. Lythiel blushed.

"Except for two problems" Sally-Anne held two fingers up, "One, I don't know about Aiji, but I happen to be a very deep sleeper, the rest of the girls are bound to notice what we're up to. Two, where the fuck are we going to find a place secluded enough to practice this super secret power that only select people know about in a school full of magic and tracking charms?"

Aiji checked her watch (advanced magic-compatible electricity built by Japanese companies for muggleborns who refuse to work without technology), it was almost time for her detention with Sergeant-sensei. "You guys figure it out, I gotta head for detention" Aiji stuck her tongue out at the last word.

"Good luck", Sally-Anne said, "and remember, don't let him bait you, he'll give you even more detentions if you react."

"He'll give me detentions even if I act like some goody-two-shoes, somehow I get the feeling that he's got a beef against me, hell if I know why" Aiji replied. After dealing with vindictive, unreasonable, and prejudiced teachers that just loved to pick on the slum-resident girl who had a teenage, alcoholic, single mother back in Japan; Aiji could sense it when people disliked her before they meet her. Granted, she can't sense the positive emotions at all to compensate for her keen ability to sense the negative ones, but that's another matter.

"See you!" the three witches chorused as Aiji left the barren (except for her friends' presence) Slytherin first-year girl's dorm.

* * *

Back at Reikai, Koenma's Office

"Kurama, Yuusuke, I know that you two are going to spit nails when I say this" Koenma started, hiding behind his desk in anticipation of a violent outburst from the two demons, "but the locket you both brought is a fake"

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN IT'S A FAKE!!!" Yuusuke roared, the force of his scream and his combat aura sent Koenma, his desk, George the assistant, and Botan flying to the wall.

"IT'S FAKE, ALREADY! IF THE BOTH OF YOU WOULD HAVE PAID ATTENTION, YA WOULD'VE NOTICED THE NOTE!!!" a female voice screeched back.

The female in question was a plump, 5'4'', old woman with wrinkles covering her face and withered hands. She wore a priestess outfit that consisted of a white haori (top) and a red hakama (bottom), her grey-white hair was pulled in a low ponytail, and she carried ofudas (demon/ghost repellants/charm cards) as well as a bow with a quiver full of arrows and she had… GUNS strapped to her hips?!

"Who the fuck are you?!" Yuusuke demanded.

The woman sniffed, "Not that it's any of your business but I am the great, the famous, the invincible, priestess of Tatsumiya temple, Tatsumiya Michiko!!!"

Right, where did those waves come from again, and how come no one got wet? What's with the weird, freaky Superhero-wannabe pose that Michiko adopted?

"Who?"

Michiko facevaulted, "What do ya mean 'who'?!? I'm a famous priestess known world-wide for exorcising demons and ghosts! Hell, I'm renowned for masterin' reiki without learnin' martial arts or ruining my perfect, youthful body with ugly scars by physical training. My meditation techniques are the BEST, ya hear?!? The BEST for acquiring reiki without the messy training! And I'M the one who discovered that you can destroy certain pesky ghosts and poltergeists usin' bullets soaked in holy water, hurts like a bitch for the lower level demons, too!..."

"As you can see, Michiko-chan has a… larger-than-life personality" Botan said as Michiko continued ranting over her accomplishments.

"… AND, most important of ALL, I am the author of _Cum Cum Yaoi Paradise_, _My Pirate Concubine_, and _Cat-boy Ayumu_!"

Now it was Koenma, George, and Botan's turn to facevault. "She saved millions of innocents from low level demons throughout her life and she considers her greatest accomplishment being the author of three homo-erotica mangas?" Koenma muttered in disbelief.

"She's just one of those people who has her priorities screwed." George the blue ogre said, and then privately thought, 'I should know, my boss is one of those people. You'd think that being a God would make him responsible and not make him want to play hooky everytime something catastrophic happens'

Kurama and Yuusuke, however, were looking at Michiko as if she had told them she had found the cure for Cancer, AIDS, world hunger and poverty.

"No WAY!" Yuusuke exclaimed with stars in his eyes, "You mean you're the great mangaka yaoi goddess, Seme-uke Ume! The amazing writer that never gives her real identity and draws such hot and sexy homo-lovin' mangas!"

"I am a particular fan of _Cat-boy Ayumu_" Kurama praised, 'though I still think that Yuusuke would make a more delicious cat-boy than Ayumu. Ah, there's always something about the wild, rough, untamable, macho ukes that makes me hot and bothered'

'**That's why we have got to mate this tiger and ride this baby**' Youko suggested as he sent a mental image of Yuusuke with cat ears and tail, struggling with a leash, fangs and claws bared, with Kurama naked behind him getting ready for some action.

A perverted grin etched itself on Kurama's face. Hey, before he had to be reborn as a human, Kurama was not only the King of Thieves, he was also Kurama the Seducer, a regular Sex God of the Makai. Meh, it's always the quiet and gentlemanly ones that are the wildest in bed.

"Yeah, me and my imoutou just love the bondage and master/slave games in _My Pirate Concubine_, Ayuru has got to be one of the hottest males alive and he's a pretty wild thing too, oh, and Reishun is so the best uke for him since he gives as good as he gets even though he's a captured pirate's slave. And I love the palace sex scene between Saihitei and Ryuuen, forbidden love between an emperor and a commoner spiced with an exteriorly romantic and sophisticated emperor who happens to have a thing for chains in bed. I love the fact that none of your ukes are wimps and that they still keep the Y chromosome…" Yuusuke rambled his love for his favorite mangas to Michiko, who preened like a peacock at the praise she was receiving from a devoted fan.

"AHEM" Koenma interrupted, "As glad as I am that you are all getting along so well, need I remind you all that we need to find the real Slytherin's locket!"

Michiko rolled her topaz eyes, "I can see where that can be a prob for the boys, since this is their mission. But what the fuck does that have ta do with me?"

Koenma sighed 'this is going to be the hard part', "We need your, eh, obscure connections to find who this R.A.B. is supposed to be, not to mention that they would come in handy to find the other horcruxes and avoid another situation like this one."

"What's in it fer me? I'm a retired priestess, I don't hunt otherworldly beings anymore, heck, the only job I have right now is that of a mangaka, and I rather like it and the research I need to do" a lecherous grin formed on her thin lips as she thought of what consisted as her research.

"Michiko-san, really, are you still peeping at the MEN'S BATHS!" George exclaimed, exasperated with the perverse priestess.

"Actually, I also peep at gay bars and brothels when things get hot an' heavy" Michiko grinned lecherously, "Of course, I have to inspect the subjects, so a little feel up here and there is necessary too"

"Oh, really madam! You must control your impulses and your hormones!" George scolded, 'Is she even capable of getting aroused at her old age', shudder. No George let's not go there, please, if not for my sake, then at least for the readers. "Shameful, really"

"Oh, stuff it you old codger! Is it so terrible to grant a dying old woman her last wish!"

"Need I remind you that this "dying old woman" drank the long-life elixir that will allow her to live three centuries tops and that you've only past your first century." Koenma remarked dryly.

"Don't bother me with details, you toddler! I bet you haven't even gone to first base yet!"

"Just because I didn't fuck every pretty male face, disrupted perfectly stable marriages by screwing the husband, and bounced on every cock, be it a human's, a demon's, or a spirit's, does not make me inexperienced!" Koenma shouted, red-faced, "Remember that one time you were attacked by the Dark Sorceress Shiina Sakurako because you stole and fucked her husband?"

Michiko scratched her head in confusion, "Who, Keisuke? Him?"

"No"

"Tatsuya?"

"No"

"Yamato?"

"No"

"Chuuin?"

"No"

"Seiya?"

"No"

"Kiba?"

"No!"

"Eiri?"

"No!"

"Hiroshi?"

"No!"

"I got it! It was Satoshi, right?"

"No! That one turned into a gay crossdresser after his wife left him because of you!"

"Oh, you're right! Satoshi was the one with the oh-so-pure-puritan-wife, Sakurako-chan was more open-minded than that. Let's see… Oh! I've got it, I've got it this time, it was that foreinger! Abraxas Malfoy!"

"No! Do you think a Malfoy would let something as scandalous as a divorce happen, no matter how much adultery took place?!? Try again, but you're right, it is a foreigner"

"Alastor Moody, no, he was never married… too bad he let himself go, he was quite the looker in his teens, and, damn, was he a wildcat in bed! Too bad that once he got that fuckin' magical eye of his, he could see through my Mary-Sue!Michiko illusion. Hmph, so what if I'm an older lady! If he wanted a fuckin' pretty face to fuck he just had to turn off that libido-killin' eye! It's not like he would be able to feel my wrinkled body under the illusion! And on top of it all, I am a tough and strong fighter, I know more about magic and spirits than he does, I'm not like those insipid average young girls, I was a Sex Goddess thanks to MY brilliant illusion. Hell, I even had the entire tragic past shit going fer me what with being teased at school by the popular bitches just 'cause my body type wouldn't let me be a size zero with endless legs and a nice ass and still keep my D-cups and tiny waist!" Michiko wailed, off track.

The moral of the rambling story? Pretty boys, beware. The so-called perfect girl dash Mary Sue you're pursuing is probably a powerful old woman who's a little too good at illusions. Just in case, watch out for the Gary-Stus too. Yuck, old people sex. I hope that Satoshi fellow didn't turn into a crossdresser because he found out that he'd been fucking an old crone, his therapist's bill must've increased dramatically.

"You're getting off track, Michiko." Koenma interrupted with an annoyed tick on his eyebrow. Really, neither was better than the other, Sakurako and Michiko were both unrepenting old nymphomaniacs. Sakurako just used advanced transfiguration mixed with dark magic to make herself into a young Sex Goddess, while Michiko used sensory illusion and holy/regenerating water to make herself appear to be a young Sex Goddess. Stupid nymphos, not only did they break possible romances, but they made the average female look weak, repulsive and too flawed to other males. Either that, or the males did the healthy thing and turned gay.

"I don't see why anyone's surprised that she and Sakurako-san had young men of all sorts wrapped around their little fingers" George mumbled, "They were 50-year-olds in gorgeous 17-year-olds' bodies" The ogre shook his head in dismay, "The poor sods never stood a chance"

"Surely you remember at least THIS ONE!" Koenma continued, "The one where you and Sakurako had that pissing contest over who could sway the heart of one of the most powerful light wizards in Europe."

"Hum, wasn't Albus Dumbledore, never was married either, then. Oh! That's right, Alby's brother! Aberforth Dumbledore!"

"Yes, and wasn't it because of you that Sakurako divorced Aberforth – she actually loved that one, you know, and she didn't appreciate you spilling the beans of her being fifty while he was only barely twenty – and later on helped Grindelwald get into power because Albus was against him, and therefore by blood association and love, Aberforth was too?" Koenma spit out.

"Sakurako-chan always did over-react, what's new there?"

"What's new is that you and your so-called 'youthful' home-wrecking ways caused a magical war in Europe" Koenma gritted his teeth in frustration, "I'd say that you owe us for the mess you caused just because you couldn't control your nymphomania!"

"Unlike some people, I actually enjoyed my youth!" Michiko stated proudly at her old home-wrecking ways, "Besides, didn't I already make it up to ya by being one of the people that created the Kekkai (barrier) between the Makai and the Ningenkai."

"She's got a point there" Yuusuke said, Kurama nodded in agreement.

"What kind of priestess are you!?" Botan spoke up. OK, the part about Michiko being a home-wrecker wasn't much of a shocker, but the fact that it was technically her fault that the war with Grindelwald happened earlier than expected was a new one.

"Botan-chan, Botan-chan, Botan-chan" Michiko tisked, "This is the 21st century for fuck's sake. We women are no longer being subjugated, this isn't the era where women who lost their virginity before marriage were either sold to brothels, disowned, or even executed. Now if the average woman can be open about her violence, her sexuality, then why can't the priestesses either?" Then Michiko went into long speech, always keeping a self-suffering tone, about how one-sided love was so heartbreaking and sexually frustrating, especially since almost none of the priestesses ever get to physically see their God/Goddess. Not to mention the unfairness of how the Gods get to have their own Harems but the devoted priests and priestesses never get any action.

Yeah, she's a very revolutionary woman. If we can just ignore the part where she plays the Mary-Sue card, you do have to admit that she is right when she says that women have needs too.

"How about we give you test subjects for your next manga" Koenma interrupted, grasping at the nearest straws he could think of.

"Test subjects, Koenma-chan?" Michiko purred, looking like the cat that got the canary _and_ the cream.

"Yeeeeesssss" Koenma said, breaking out in cold sweat, if the boys weren't going to kill him for the fake Horcrux, they sure as hell will kill him for this, "In fact, why don't you take Yuusuke and Kurama over here as a test run."

Michiko drooled, especially as she took a second glance at the boys. 'Aiya! The redhead is perfect as a Saihitei model, ideal seme material, and isn't he a youkai? Oooooh, I bet his demon form is hotter! And the greenhead is so cute in a rough-I'm-a-macho-man kinda way! He is so uke material! Finally a real uke model that isn't a wimp! Perfect Ayumu and Reishun model material. Ara, wonder what their cock-sizes are drools KYAAHH!!!'

While Michiko was mentally… ahem… evaluating her new **inspiration**, Yuusuke was not as… pleased with the god's decision. As the lyrics of a famous Spanish tango go: The baby that doesn't complain doesn't cry; the baby that doesn't cry isn't weaned; the baby that isn't weaned is an idiot. Yuusuke, despite popular belief and his academic scores, is not an idiot.

"What the Blue Hell do you think you're doing, you dirty son of a fucking camel?! Do I look like a fucking whore to you, you (censored) (censored) (censored) irresponsible (censored) (censored) sorry excuse (censored) (censored) of a god!!" Wow, never knew that Yuusuke could speak a different language, or were those cuss words that just were not invented? Shrugs.

'**Oi, baka, what do you think you're doing?!**'

'What do you mean Youko?'

'**In case you haven't noticed in those lovely piece of art—I mean ningen waste of time in paper, that Saihitei character seems a little bit like you, no?**'

'Wait a minute! You mean you enjoy those too?' a smug smirk appeared on Kurama's face, it wasn't often that he got to pull one over Youko, 'is there something you want to confess, Youko?' he asked in a (deadly) sugary sweet tone.

'**Yeah, that you'd end up being the Saihitei model and Yuusuke will be the Ryuuen one. Meaning we get to have SEX SCENES with him! And that Ayuru fellow does resemble me in a way.**'

Kurama was not going to let up, sex scenes with Yuusuke or no sex scenes, 'So you DO take enjoyment out of yaoi manga you little hypocrite.'

'**That isn't important for Inari's sake! Did you or did you not hear what I just said?! Or do I have to show you?**'

Instantly, Kurama was filled with images of Yuusuke all tied up, struggling with the ropes/chains on his wrists and ankles, glaring at him defiantly, almost as if daring him to touch him, his cock the only body part that betrayed his arousal…

_Uh-oh, Captain! Extreme blood exodus heading South, right at the testicles, sir!_

_What the fuck are you talking about Scotty?! The exodus is headed North, we're getting ready for a gasp nosebleed!  
_

_Captain, Captain!_

_What is it this time, Scotty?!_

_We're the only ones at the brain, sir! And there are only perverse pictures of the object of affection's nakedness! _

_Oh fuck! There's no sign of intelligence here! … That's a new one._

_Uh, Captain…_

_What is it Scotty?_

_Isn't it a good thing? Aren't healthy teenagers supposed to have raging libidos…even if said teenagers are fox spirits in disguise, BUT fox spirits are sexual creatures, and their libidos are said to be legendarily…ahem… __**healthy**_

_Scotty?_

_Yes, Captain, sir!_

_Shut up._

Well I'll be damned, folks! Fox-boy got his first nosebleed – in this lifetime, at least – awww… ignore the starry-eyed, currently maternal narrator. She'll be back to normal in a second or two.

'**Oh Hell NO! He chooses NOW to go on a perverted bye-bye.**'

With an internal, frustrated sigh, Youko took control of Kurama's body. Where the red-haired, nosebleeding bishounen once stood, a silver-haired, fox-eared and tailed Sex God – because nothing could do the ravaging creature justice but Sex God with a capital S and G – stood with his arms crossed and a hedonistic smirk on his face.

Michiko didn't just drool, her nose began to bleed, and there was some suspicious, non-urine related, moisture appearing between her legs in her red hakama. This would be arousing for the straight male and lesbian readers if Michiko would be her young, slutty self with big topaz eyes, sky-turquoise-blue hair, and killer big-breasted, curvaceous and long-legged body. But, alas, the illusion that even tricked the senses of humans, demons, and spirits alike into thinking that Michiko was a youthful Sex Goddess did not work in Koenma's office.

"Yuusuke and I will be delighted to… model for Michiko-san" Youko said with a sexy smile that had Michiko turning into a pile of goo, "I understand that there will be some… sex scenes involved" Youko purred, his smile losing any innocence it had as he saw Yuusuke blush, "I'm sure Yuusuke and I will not have a problem with that, however, I request that for those my only partner be him and vice-versa."

"Eh? But Youko—"

"Screw the team!" Michiko exclaimed with a sinful, lecherous grin on her face, "I'll take those two!"

"B-but, listen, baba! This is—"

"Unless if you find all the Horcruxes, you no get vacation from Reikai" Michiko taunted with a baby-voice. "Besides, I'll give the both of you all of my completed works for free! The pay is good, too"

'Wait a minute, Yuusuke you big moron! This is your chance to get hot an' heavy with Kurama with a good excuse! And I'll get the mangas for FREE! AND I'll get PAID for having SEX with KURAMA! Maybe I can even make him love me in these sessions.' Smirk 'Ha HA! I am a genius! Maybe this love thing isn't as hard as I thought'

"Baba! You got yourself a deal! We can start now!"

'**SCORE!!**'

'Amen'

"Hell yeah! You, foxy, stay in that form for the next few hours! We're going to my studio/apartment and start immediately on _My Pirate Concubine_! Foxy's gonna be Ayuru and puppy-eyes here's gonna be Reishun!"

"Wait a minute" Koenma interrupted, "What about the Horcruxes!"

"Business first, baby" Michiko tossed back, "gotta check out the goods an' see of it's a fair trade. C'mon boys" Before anyone could get a word edgewise, Michiko grabbed Yuusuke and Youko and dragged them out of the god's office.

"Ne, Koenma-sama?"

"What is it Botan?"

"What about that bet you had with Raizen-sama? Even someone as daft and dense as Yuusuke is bound to figure out that Kurama loves him under these new…" Botan searched for a word that could describe the situation, "circumstances?"

Koenma paled, without caring about something as trivial as how the fuck did Botan find out about the bet and why isn't she scolding me? "Oh (censored) (censored) (censored) (censored) I'm DEAD!"

He rushed after the departing trio. "Michiko MATTE! I changed my mind, we don't need your connections! The world is fine for now just gimme back my detectives! HEY! Are you listening to me?!?!"

* * *

"Inside" Severus barked ominously as he let Aiji in the Potions lab.

Now any other student, be they newbie rookie first years or veteran and experienced seventh years, would be terrified at the thought of spending detention on the Potions lab with Snape in a bad mood. Even Draco Malfoy, who was Severus Snape's _godson_, would be wary of having a detention with him when the man was in one of those 'I'm so irritated with this bogtrodding imbecilic world that I could kill everyone in this ruddy castle with a smile on my face' moods.

Aiji, being Aiji, wasn't particularly concerned.

Neither was Hiei for that matter. After all, what's the worst that the mangy ningen could do? Hn.

"Normally, other more lenient Professors would make insolent pupils write lines or some other such nonsense." He sneered, "I, however, believe that a more… physical punishment is more efficient" of course, Severus meant that Aiji would have to clean the cauldrons and even the lab itself.

"Isn't beating up a student illegal in Europe?" Aiji flatly asked, completely bored. Next to Tanaka-sensei, this guy was a pussycat. "Ya do release that anything you throw at me I'll throw right back at ya ten times over?" Let's not become trash like Tanaka-teme, okay teachers?

'That's IT' Severus saw red. "Your insolence, Potter, will not be tolerated. Really, you're just like your seditious father" he coldly growled.

"Oi, bastard, your beef, whatever the fuck it is, is with me, not my old man" Aiji hissed back.

'Not entirely true, more like it's the other way around' Severus's hardly-used-except-on-the-rare-occasion conscience chided its ego. 'Shut up' Severus subtly aimed a glare at his heart for three nano-seconds, 'I thought I killed you already'

"Hm, I was going to make you scrub the floors until they were spotless, but since you're so eager to fight like a brash Gryffindor," he SNEERED, no he didn't sneer, he SNEERED, "how about a little duel? Or are you too much of a coward?"

"Let it never be said that a Urameshi lacks balls" Aiji spat.

"Wrong gender, Potter." He snorted, "and the mole-hills on your chest can barely pass for being round, and that is a generous description."

Uh-oh, wrong thing to say. Aiji is still a girl, and you know what happens when you call a girl flat-chested.

"Nani?! Snape no TEME!" Aiji roared as she decked him in the face.

'Did you get the license plate of the Knight Bus that hit me?' Aiji may be wearing reiki/youki restraints, so Severus wasn't knocked out cold like the bodyguards were (being crucio-ed by Tommy-boy tends to give people more resistance to pain, after all), but it was still the hardest punch Severus had ever felt without the aid of a strengthening potion.

"You little bastard!" Severus smashed his own fist in Aiji's face, seeing not the girl's visage but her father's. It didn't help that Aiji had a boyish face and a lanky, muscular body; making her appear like a green-eyed, long haired version of James (minus the glasses).

Aiji didn't register the pain in her cheek, 'for a ningen, he has a mean left hook', and merely allowed herself to drop and roll with the punch as she slid her body upwards, bringing her left leg up for a roundhouse kick.

Severus blocked the powerful kick with his right arm, and, ignoring the pain, grabbed the compact leg and pulled. As Aiji lost her balance, she gave a jump with her right leg and brought her knee up, striking the greasy-haired man in the solar plexus.

They both fell down to the ground, with Severus trying to pin the girl down. Aiji used her superior strength to get out of his grip and then punched him in the cheek.

Both combatants continued on fighting for the next five minutes, until Severus reminded himself that he was an effin' wizard, so why the bloody hell was he using his fists for?

Snarling, Severus reached for his wand, only for Aiji to grab his arm and twist it behind his back in an awkward position.

"Shouldn't have left yerself open when ya reached fer yer wand" Aiji sing-songed as she held the slender man captive with her demon strength. Even though, compared to the demons that she had fought, Snape's strength wasn't much to write home about, Aiji was still surprised at the strength the man held. He had almost made her put her strength restraints on a lower level, indicating that he was much stronger than the average person. For a lazy wizard that needs a wand and magic to even wipe his own arse, that was quite impressive.

"You'll have to pardon my lack of muggle brawling prowess" Severus spat venomously, "However, I do not often require to lower myself to dueling in such a barbaric way"

Even while bound, he was still being a sarcastic, crotchety asshole. Aiji was starting to like this guy, too bad he has a beef with her. Voldemort supporter, maybe? Dammit, why is it that the interesting ones always have to be the bad guys?

"Yeah, and said 'barbaric way' of fighting has you on the floor, at my mercy, and wandless" Among other things that have improved about Aiji, her pickpocketing skills now rival that of her brother's.

"Just like your father to pick on those weaker than you and use any weakness against them" Severus bitterly said.

'That's the second time he mentioned 'tou-san, maybe he has a beef with him?' Aiji thought with dread. Great, just what she needed, a human with a vendetta against a demon lord, nevermind that said demon lord was dead.

"Aren't Slytherins supposed to use their opponents' weaknesses against them?" Aiji pondered aloud, "That's beside the point, what I wanna know is what's your beef with my 'tou-san? You probably never even met 'em!"

"What are you talking about, you filthy liar! I was in the same year as your ruddy father!" Severus snarled, 'and now she calls me old! That (censored) brat!'

"Ano, aren't you a bit young to be as old as 'tou-san? Hell, I doubt he ever came to England, too." Aiji mused, "So you're actually Japanese, then?" 'And a demon?' she added to herself.

Yeah, not the sharpest knife in the drawer, that's Aiji.

'Japan? Wait a minute' "Are we talking about the same James Potter?"

"You mean the one you have a beef with is James-tou-san?"

"Who else did you think I was talking about!?"

"Raizen-sama, that's who"

"Raizen-sama?"

"My adopted 'tou-san. You know, big bad scary fighter with a power the size of China? Kicked the bucket when I was nine and had a good number of enemies, too" Aiji prompted, if this guy was a demon slayer, then he should know exactly who Raizen was without Aiji divulging much information.

"I was talking about your biological father, James Potter!"

"Ara, so that's who you have a beef with – wait, you said that you were in the same year as him?" Aiji asked, incredulous and off-track, "Dude! How old _was_ James-tou-san when I was born? You can't be older than thirty!"

"Thirty-one actually" Severus admitted, "And your parents had you when they were twenty"

"So much for feminism influencing young girls to wait a few years before getting' acquainted with the ol' ball an' chain" Aiji muttered, "So what's your beef with my old man? Did he dump you or did he steal your lover?"

"Excuse ME?!?!" Severus squawked. 'Right out of the mouth of babes, Severus. You can tell her what a nice arse that was too' Angel Severus mocked his host from his perch on the man's shoulder. 'Oh, honestly! Are you going to let that (censored) (censored) brat get away with that! Who cares if she's right!?' Devil Severus scolded his host on the opposite shoulder as Angel Severus.

'Oh. Hell. NO. Not those two again! The only thing that was missing in this scene was my nymphomaniac Angel side and my violent Devil side!'

"Potter! They're your parents! Aren't you even going to pretend to be a little disturbed by that!?" Severus cried, red-faced, glad that he couldn't see the look on the girl's face, "And whatever happened between your father and myself is none of your business!"

"Then what's with the third degree yer sendin' me?" Aiji retorted cheekily, "And if yer gonna say 'Aiji, I'm your father' then I will deny any connection with Luke Skywalker"

"To my knowledge, your parents were happily married, so it will not be me you will hear that overused line from"

"So which one was your lover: Lily-ka-san or James-tou-san?"

"Your father was a man" Severus deadpanned, "Aren't you disturbed due to your muggle homophobia?"

"Not _all_ muggles are homophobic. Besides, older girls find it hot for two hot guys to go down on each other" 'Me too' "Besides, my 'ka-san's currently a single bisexual woman who's got great taste in men and women"

'That, I did not need to know' "If you want to hear my love life, then at least let me up you brat"

Aiji dropped her iron grip on his arm and got off him. Then she pulled up a chair and sat down, facing the back of it.

Severus mentally sneered at her plebeian and masculine manner of sitting down, 'just like the arsehole'. He sat down with his back straight, his feet firmly planted on the ground, ready to leap at a moment's notice.

"Your father and I … had a very complicated relationship"

"The S&M kind?"

Had Severus been drinking something at that moment, he would have spat it out from shock.

"Where the bloody Hell do you get these ideas from!?!"

"Well, if it's James-tou-san that you had a relationship with, then you guys musta had fights over who was dominant to top the love/hate relationship. Or did ya start hating his guts when he dumped ya for Lily-ka-san?"

Severus was a hair's breath away of popping a blood vessel. This was the type of conversation he'd expect from Lucius, but Potter Junior? Why the bloody Hell wasn't the brat as embarrassed as _he_ was about the conversation!? They were discussing her father's sex life here!

"I hated and despised your (censored) (censored) father's guts from day one. It hasn't changed in any of the years that have come to pass, no matter how good he was on his _back_!"

"Fuck buddies, then? Without the buddy part."

"No! It was a duel we both challenged each other to at night! Do not even THINK for five seconds that I ever held any other feelings other than contempt for him, Potter!"

"You said it, not me" Aiji grinned. 'So that's what his beef is about. Guess he didn't like getting dumped for a _girl_, especially when his lover was the submissive one'

"Don't get the wrong idea, you immature prat. Nothing changed outside of the ruddy sheets" His tone of voice didn't change, there wasn't a cloud of depressing aura surrounding him, and his eyes didn't show any emotion; the only indication to his bitterness was the fact that he mentioned it at all.

Aiji didn't know that, as she was not familiar with his character, but her instincts were telling her that this man felt more for her deceased biological father than he let on…

Okay, so it wasn't her instincts. It was more like Hiei telepathically whispered to her what Snape was thinking.

"Soooo, how about a deal, Snape-man?" Aiji bargained, "You quit giving me the third degree and treat me like any other Slytherin and no one has to know about yours and James-tou-san's interesting relationship"

Had James ever used blackmail on anyone, Severus was willing to bet his left nut that the arrogant prankster would have had the same mischievous, mean-spirited, devil who stole the soul expression on his face. 'She even smirks just like he did after a Quidditch victory, fucking (censored) supercilious brat'

"And just who will believe you Potter? I'm certain that all and sunder will all of the sudden accept the fact that the two infamous rivals of the class of 1977 were going at it like bunnies behind the scenes. Very believable thing, that." The sarcasm was so thick, you had to skip the knife and use an axe to cut it.

Grinning triumphantly, Aiji produced her pretty turquoise coloured Samsung cellphone. "Don't you just _love_ advanced magically-compatible technology? Especially those that let you record conversations?"

'Why that sneaky, crafty, backstabbing, little BITCH! She's blackmailing me!' Despite that, a part of Severus couldn't help but admire her for being so…so Slytherin in spite of her Gryffindor ancestry.

Before he could retort, Aiji had pocketed her treasured piece of heaven (she's an effin' city-kid, who the fuck can _live_ without technology after having but a taste of it?) in one of her numerous pant pockets.

"So, do we have a deal, Sergeant-sensei?" Aiji asked, her green eyes challenging her professor and supposed predator. 'Who's hunting who now, asshole?'

"You do realize that you will come off as a pervert? And I'm sure that your fans will be thrilled to know that their oh-so-angelic savior has flaws." Severus sneered, just because he was fighting a losing battle doesn't mean that he will go down quietly. 'Why the Blue Hell did I open my big mouth for?'

'Easy, because you needed to get this out of your chest, and Lucius just wouldn't understand love if it bit him in the arse. Lust, easy; love, hell no.' Angel Severus tried to point out the quixotic, _eau de rose_ version of it.

Which, of course, was 94 percent untrue.

'Bollocks!' Devil Severus spat, 'you just spilled the beans because the brat shocked you into it. Where the bloody hell does she get off, being too fucking perceptive in our sex-life?'

"Sensei, whoever told you that I wasn't a pervert is the best goddamned liar in the entire universe. As for the fans, what do I care?"

'Well, she got me good, fuck' knowing that he lost, Severus accepted defeat as gracefully as possible, "Let's get one thing clear, bitch. I'm only agreeing because keeping this quiet after you opened your big mouth would be too much of a hassle and I have better things to do, square?"

"It's a deal!" Aiji beamed, her eyes betraying her smug triumph. The green girl then got off her chair and said "Now, if you'll excuse me I've got some jetlag to sleep off" she then hastily walked out of the room, hubris and triumph resounding on her every step.

Severus didn't even bother to call her back and reprimand her for leaving without his permission. He was now supposed to treat her as he would any of his snakes, so no more Potter torture for him.

'Well, at least she didn't just take it and act all disgustingly honorable' Severus thought to himself. 'But, then again, considering who and what she's up against, maybe it is a good thing that she is a bitch.'

Severus felt a bit of smug pride at that. She may be James' daughter, and she may have gotten some of his arrogance and bullheadedness; but James and his group, for all their pranks and mischief, never once tried to blackmail someone of higher authority than themselves.

Now a romantic would say that Severus was glad to see a piece of himself inside the child of his beloved.

A realist, on the other hand, would say that Severus was glad that the daughter of his former lover dash new snake had both enough backbone _and_ slyness to survive in the dirty world of the famous and Slytherin.

'She's going to need all the bitchiness she can spare to survive in this world'

* * *

Yeah, I know that Yuu-chan's reaction to Michiko being a Yaoi Mangaka was a bit OOC, BUT she is the person that provides him with lots of material for Kurama dreaming. And since Yuu-chan is certain that Kurama doesn't like him that way (sweet idiot), then the only thing he has of comfort is his right hand. (Grins perversly) That, and I imagined this would be what a conversation b/w Jiraiya and Kakashi from Naruto would be like regarding _Icha Icha Paradise_ (Michiko being Jiraiya and Yuusuke being Kakashi)

The reason for creating Michiko was more for self-indulgence than anything. One, she was going to serve for the role of the perverted elder (only female), and in a way she will play matchmaker and hopefully help the boys realize that they like each other already. And two, she will serve for my anti-Mary-Sue moments without bashing Michiko herself.

And for those of you that have read Deathly Hallows... yes I know that Snape never said that he liked James like that but all the same! The fact that his Patronus is a doe instead of a lily flower was what made me think that he liked James and felt that he was James' female, or the roles were switched (James was the sub but his Patronus was the dom and Sev was the opposite). Also, this is my reaction to all of those Severus/Lily and Severitus (with Lily still being the mother) fics on TOP of it being cannon, besides (takes out artistic licence) since I'm not making any money out of this and this is fanfiction, I do not have to follow cannon. So NYAH!

Any and all comments, positive or negative, are welcome!


	6. I wasn't supposed to do that? Oh, well

Hi all! Okay, so how many people wanna kill me today for the delay in updating (glances and notices the Iron Maiden, no pun intended). Oooookay, I can deal with that (runs away). Ju-ju-just remember if you want me to update, I have to be alive to do so!! Both cyber and literally!!

Aiji: What she said, let her live, I wanna kick some ass, eat some chocolate, and hook nii-chan up with 'Rama.

Daphne: I want more screen-time!

Lythiel: I want more character-development!

Sally-Anne: So troublesome, I want more easily accessible entertainment that doesn't involve physical exertion.

Alright, alright!! Calm down, people. One at a time.

So here you have it folks, I haven't given up on this baby. Even though College has proven to be more of an enjoyable hassel than I thought (mental note to self: never ever take 6 classes per semster again, no matter how cool all of these classes happen to be).

Hope y'all like this new chapter and that I haven't turned people off this story due to slow updates.

Enjoy

* * *

Days have turned to weeks and the girls still hadn't found a suitable place to train

Days had turned to weeks and the girls still hadn't found a suitable place to train. That is, until one morning Aiji swallowed her pride and caved in and asked Hiei-nii for help. The male koorime had efficiently scanned the minds of –surprise, surprise – the house-elves, and learned of a place called the Room of Requirement. Of course, the diminutive demon then proceeded to mock Aiji's inefficient efforts at finding it for a long while.

Of course Daphne was still puzzling over how the Hell the house-elves knew of the place.

"It's easy Daphne" Sally-Anne explained to her tall friend with a hint of impatience, "the house-elves have got to keep the ruddy castle clean at all times. And that also includes secret and secluded passageways and rooms that almost no one uses"

The first days of training were… challenging to say the least. Aiji and Sally-Anne sleep like logs in the mornings, it also doesn't help that both girls are night owls instead of early birds. The first day the quartet scheduled to train, the blondes woke up the wrong girls with the ruckus they were throwing trying to wake up the sleepy heads of their group.

Any complaints Parkinson and Bulstrode could have made were silenced by the threat of waking up with warts and blemishes one day – courtesy of Daphne and her extensive knowledge of herbs and potions – and with the promise of the loss of all physical strength for a month – Lythiel allowed some of her seldom shown sadism to shine through that hellish morning.

Davis, being the useful coward that she was, decided to defuse the situation by grabbing Parkinson and Bulstrode by the arms and dragging them to the bathroom to 'freshen up and properly prepare for the day as the Slytherin Princess and her entourage.'

McDougal just raised an eyebrow, muttered about insane girls waking up before the roosters in her Scottish dialect, grabbed her supplies and clothes, and went to join the rest of the girls in washing up.

In the end, Daphne woke Sally-Anne up by teasing the brunette with a pouch full of galleons and promising her that she could keep it if she woke up. Lythiel ended up bribing the sleeping savior with food she ordered Slinky the house-elf to get to the dorms.

Then, the girls had an argument about what their next course of action would be.

Daphne argued that they should shower before training, while Aiji and Lythiel said that it'd be less time consuming and more efficient to freshen themselves up after training. Sally-Anne just wanted a nice hot bath and to go back to bed, but she didn't voice it since it would be too troublesome to do so since her idea would be shot down anyway.

In the end, the girls decided (more like forced Daphne and Sally) to take a shower at the Room of Requirement.

The girls put on their workout clothes – or the oldest clothes the witches could spare – put their uniforms and accessories in Aiji's huge heavy-duty gym bag, and took their school bags with them as they left the dorm before the other girls got out of their baths.

Getting to the Room of Requirement was easy, even Filch was asleep at this hour since he spent the majority of his waking moments patrolling the grounds at night after 2 AM.

Aiji encountered her first obstacle when she had to teach her friends.

None of the girls were even remotely athletic. The most active of them all was Daphne since she had no problem getting into the occasional brawl, she rode on horseback, flew occasionally, and she did minor workouts to keep a "perfect" figure while still being able to eat her favorite sugar-soaked foods.

By the time the hour of training was up, Aiji learned that Daphne had absolutely no stamina, a very low defense and endurance to pain and, though her bones were naturally strong, she had no muscles to make her hits stronger.

Lythiel, because she focused completely on the mental aspects of herself, lacked any physical strength, and therefore didn't know her own limits and exhausted herself easily by overdoing things, as usual.

Sally-Anne proved herself to be an honest woman; she _did_ suck at sports, and was on the floor panting by the time the warm-ups were done.

It didn't help matters that Aiji was one impatient individual. Now she understood why Genkai was so hard-assed with her and Yuusuke.

"Oh, come ON guys. This is pathetic! It's only ten laps!"

"Easy for you to say Aiji" Daphne panted, too worn out to care that she was being insulted, "you actually have some physical durability"

"We're not going to get anywhere like this" Sally groaned, "Your expectations of us are way too high, we need to do something that's at our level instead of a street fighter's"

"After this, we need to plan a training schedule that actually matches our abilities, or lack thereof" Lythiel added her two-cents.

Aiji frowned, then tried to calm herself down, 'they're right, as much as I hate to admit it, if I push them too hard it will overload their bodies and become fatal. I've got to tone it down. Fuck, I need help with this' "You guys take a break, I suggest you stretch your muscles unless if you want cramps for the rest of the day."

"What are you going to do?" Lythiel asked as she noticed the room added dumbbells and other weights.

"I'm going to warm up some more, then I'll tend to my own training" Aiji responded as she picked up a pair 200 lbs dumbbells and started to shadow box with them.

While the three witches stretched, they gazed at their green-haired companion in awe. No wonder Aiji needed to use strength and energy diluting devises, with her lack of self-restraint she'd accidentally kill someone with her monster power.

It wasn't long before Aiji forced the girls to run ten laps again while the greenhead held herself up in a one-handed, one-fingered handstand using her reiki. Even this old exercise was difficult to pull off without mixing her reiki and her youki, stupid Reikai!

This time, Lythiel hadn't overexerted herself as much since she paced herself on her ten laps, though it took her nearly a half hour to finish them with her slow pace. Daphne's lack of stamina caused the tall girl to run the first three laps at high speed (for her), and the rest at a snail's pace due to exhaustion. As for Sally-Anne, she didn't try to pace herself and yet still went in a sluggish pace, her trot (if it could be called that) was slower than Daphne's post-three-laps' pace.

By the time they were done, Aiji had finished her handstand exercise and was finishing up her one thousand push-ups with weights on her back.

In other words, the different level of athletism between the girls was pathetic.

The boyish girl raised an eyebrow, and sneered a bit "OK girls, I want you guys to punch yer respective dummies fifty times non-stop, then we'll cool down and hit the showers. I have a feelin' that pug-girl and her posse are gonna squeal if we're late to class."

That was motivation enough for the three sweaty and dog-tired girls.

Daphne was looking forward to punching the dummies, this was, after all, something she somewhat specialized in considering all of the broken noses she produced. And of course the promise of washing up compelled her even more to finish, she probably looked like an ugly swamp monster with all the yucky sweat on her. Yuck!

Lythiel was all for finishing up, classes were about to start and she was not going to allow all of her hard-work to go out the window just because of late attendance. Nuh-uh, no siree bob! And if she couldn't finish all fifty punches today, she'll double up tomorrow on the punches and run an extra ten laps. Yeah, that'll make her stronger!

Sally-Anne could only drool at the thought of a nice, long, scalding shower to relax her tensed beyond belief muscles and nerves. Oh, and they had to be on time for Professor Flitwick's class. She was not going to lose points with the Charms' instructor! That was one of her best ruddy classes dammit, and A's usually mean more money in the future!

However, what seemed to be a simple exercise turned out to be a total nightmare for the girls. Punching a relatively hard and solid dummy continuously without the aid of machines is much harder to accomplish than people realize. The weakening girls were just lucky that Aiji didn't order them to punch at their strongest continuously, that'd be murder for the untrained witches.

When even Daphne's tongue was lolling out of her mouth, Aiji decided to take some kind of pity on them and actually let the girls have _some_ input in their training. After all, they did have a point, they haven't been breaking opponents twice their size in half ever since they started elementary school like Aiji and Yuusuke.

Sigh, this is going to be one long training year.

* * *

The next week, Aiji lost her ridiculously miniature didactic patience and decided to bring out the big guns.

'Now I understand why Genkai-baa-chan was so hard on nii-chan and me.'

On the sleepy Monday morning, the Room of Requirement produced a forest-like area resembling the one at Genkai's temple. The three witches stared at the new setting with confusion and some apprehension. They especially had a reason to be wary considering the big smirk that promised pain etched on Aiji' face.

"Today's yer lucky day, girls! If yer speed doesn't improve by at least 10 percent after today, then I'll offer myself as Sergeant-sensei's love-slave!"

Sally-Anne, Lythiel and Daphne thought of the harsh training regime Aiji did… and saw their dehydrated, bloody, maybe mutilated, corpses as a result of said training.

Aiji sauntered over to the girls with three huge pots, some bottled honey, and some rope.

Sally-Anne was the first one to put two and two together to make four, spun on her heel, and started dashing for the exit. Daphne was the second one that got the hint and as a result her eyes widened. The champagne-tressed girl grabbed her shorter companion and followed Sally-Anne to safety.

They weren't a match for Aiji. Before the girls could get their panic induced minds to grab their wands and stupefy their momentarily insane friend, Aiji swept by them and knocked them out, taking their wands from their persons.

Then the little devil incarnate started to firmly tie the pots on the girls' backs, adding a sticking charm for good measure, and then poured generous amounts of honey inside, around and on the holes. She even tied the girls' hands behind their backs for good measure.

Taking out a bottle of vinegar, Aiji uncorked the container and placed it near all three girls' noses. A cacophony of groans echoed throughout the forest as the witches regained consciousness.

Only for them to have a panic attack as their brains registered what was in store for them.

/Aiji-chan, you really don't want to do this, this is insane! Completely batty! This is just a moment of pure and utter lunacy and when you come to your senses you will regret this! You're going to kill us, you understand!/ Lythiel shrieked in Japanese, almost as if the cerulean-eyed child hoped that in hearing her mother tongue, the infantine green child would cease her ruthless and loony actions.

"You're nuts Aiji, if you think we'll go through with this" Sally-Anne squawked, "completely batshit! The only thing we'll get out of this is us being stung to death! And then what'll happen?! You don't even have an alibi incase we get killed!!"

Daphne, on the other hand, decided that pleadings wouldn't help at all and that Aiji was going to go through with it anyway (whether they like it or not), so she figured she'd best save her pride by not begging for salvation to a wall.

"Why you puny little (censored) (censored) (censored), you'd better fucking pray that I'm too tired by the time we're done to (censored) (censored) roast you over an open fire and –"

Daphne's tirade and Lythiel and Sally's pleadings were cut short as Aiji hit a hive that appeared out of nowhere. The swarm of bees that found the threesome covered in honey gave the otherwise athletically crippled girls the adrenalin necessary to run like the wind.

"MOMMY!!" bawled the girls as they ran from the angry black and yellow cloud of bees.

* * *

"KOENMA!" Enma-Daiou bellowed at his only – 'Thank you Fate' – son. "What is the meaning of THIS?!"

Koenma cringed at his father's furious tone that hinted to slow, torturous pain if he didn't give the giant a satisfactory answer. Gulping, the godling tentatively responded "What 'this' do you mean, Chichi-ue?"

OK, so maybe it sounds a bit cheeky of Koenma. But in cases like these, the Junior God of Death knew that his best bet of surviving an encounter with Enma when he was THIS mad was either to play possum or play dumb.

"THIS" Enma sneered, "Would be A) why is Urameshi Yuusuke, a Toushin _and_ the Demon Lord of Toranin, still a part of the Reikai Tantei and currently on the Voldemort mission; B) why is Alyssa Potter still around the Urameshi boy and insists on remaining a youkai; and finally C) what is this that I hear about you making a bet with the late Raizen concerning your paperwork?!"

Oh shit.

Not for section A) or B), Koenma had long since prepared counter-arguments against his father forcibly separating the Urameshi siblings, killing Yuusuke, erase Aiji's memories as Urameshi Aiji and replace them with false ones as Alyssa Potter, or anything similar long before he had sent Aiji to England.

… Alright, it was more like Atsuko involved herself into this mission when Botan accidentally – Koenma reminded himself to rip out the ferry girl's voice box, it caused more trouble than it was worth – spilled the beans about the current… ahem… _political climate_ at the Reikai concerning her children.

The chestnut-haired harpy then forced her way into Koenma's office in a very Yuusuke and Aiji manner, grabbed him by the throat and demanded that Koenma protect her babies from his father and, dammit, he'd better pay them for their work.

When Koenma protested, saying that it wasn't his job, Atsuko spun him on her lap, took out a massive bullwhip from Kami-knows-where, and tanned Koenma's ass raw with it.

Suffice to say, Koenma saw things Atsuko's way and made preparations to protect the Urameshi siblings. The money part however… Koenma winced as he still felt pain on his rear from the bullwhip spankings. Atsuko had _convinced_ him that it was only fair that her children get paid for their services.

Yeesh, that evil cunt could even put his father's spankings to shame.

"Chichi-ue, before you can say anything else about the Urameshi siblings" Koenma began, hoping that his father will forget about his third complaint if they began butting heads on matters concerning Yuusuke and Aiji, "think about it! Even if they are youkai, and powerful ones at that, they aren't exactly like human-hating demons that are hell-bent on taking over Ningenkai and/or Reikai. Hell, Yuusuke even created the Makai tournament when he and Aiji could've just as easily ruled over a third of the Makai. So far, because of this system and Enki's ruling, there have been less confrontations of the violent sort between all three worlds. You know it, I know it, even Obaa-sama and Ojii-sama know it."

Enma raised an eyebrow, the only visible testament to his surprise, 'since when does Koenma have a backbone? Hell, since when does he actually think for himself and not blindly follow orders from me or the other gods?'

It was a… queer feeling what the gigantic god felt at present. It was almost as if he was just now realizing that Koenma had matured some, not a lot, but enough to not just dismiss him as an immature little brat outright.

'When did you begin to grow up?' "Be it as it may, you are still sending demons to represent the Reikai, and who knows what they will be like a thousand years from now. They may be tame now in their optimistic youth, but what of when they are old and jaded?" let's see just how much Koenma can take before he cracks and does as daddy says like usual.

Koenma gave his father a dry look, "Gee, Chichi-ue, after having personally dealt with the Oedipus case by sending your Furies, one would think that you would know all about self-fulfilling prophecies" golden eyes, for once, stared his father down, "If we alienate Yuusuke, Aiji, Hiei, Kurama or any other demon, then yes they will probably be very powerful and dangerous enemies in the future. Even more so if we try to kill them, erase their memories, separate them or anything similar; what do you think their reactions are going to be?"

"Are you implying that we will fail in maiming them or otherwise, Koenma? They may be demons, but we are gods" Enma smirked in amusement.

Koenma, suddenly serious, looked his father straight in the eye as he replied, "As a god, I couldn't defeat Sensui when I concentrated all of the power I had stored into my fukumen into one fatal blast. Yuusuke, Hiei, and Kurama have long since surpassed Sensui's power level. Aiji may be only a B-class demon now when untransformed, but in her Toushin form she is at least a lower A-class, and I don't need to tell you how overprotective the boys are over their 'imoutou'"

Enma was shocked, now that Koenma mentioned it, yes it was possible to overpower a god without having any divine blood. After all, that Xena chick took great pleasure in killing gods that tried to kill her daughter Eve.

It wasn't often that Koenma caught his father off guard by making a good point, but this was going to be one of those occasions.

"You are adamant on keeping the Urameshi siblings together, as demons, and still using them as Reikai Tantei?"

Koenma nodded.

"Very well. I will allow this, if only because it will strengthen ties with the Makai." Seeing his son sight in relief, Enma added, "BUT, just remember Koenma, they, along with Youko Kurama and Jaganshi Hiei, are your responsibility. They try to pull a Sensui or a Suzaku, and it's your ass, got it?" can't let the brat get off the hook that easily, no matter how proud Enma was of him at the moment.

Koenma gulped, "Yes, Chichi-ue, I understand" 'I hope none of them ever lose it and pull a Suzaku!' he thought as he massaged his abused tush.

Enma nodded imperiously, glad that two of the three problems were solved, "Now what's this I hear about your deal with Raizen?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Chichi-ue" Koenma replied quickly, a little too quickly to be sincere.

"Ah, so that ferry girl Botan is a liar, then? Or maybe her sources cannot be trusted, hm?" Enma sardonically commented.

'I'm going to kill her, no, that's too quick and nice for her. I'm going to pluck out every single one of her pretty blue hair of hers and then force feed them to her. I'm going to change her into a pretty-boy and sell her to Michiko, or Sakurako, or both…'

Over the years, Koenma had learned that there were, indeed, fates much worse than death.

* * *

"What on earth happened to you three?" a bewildered Blaise Zabini asked Daphne, Lythiel and Sally-Anne as the swell-faced trio entered Charms class.

The three girls merely glared bloody murder at Blaise and Aiji, the sadistic bitch, as they sat down – wincing from their stings – and started to pull out their supplies.

When the dark-skinned boy's inquiring gaze fell upon Aiji, she just shrugged and said "Apparently, the honey didn't agree with them" although the smug smirk on Aiji's face made the innocent looking comment seem suspicious.

'Since when have Greengrass, Moon and Perks been allergic to honey?' wondered the eavesdropping Pansy.

Nonetheless, it was the perfect opportunity to get even for Pansy.

"What's the matter girls, not women enough to—" Pansy didn't have a chance to finish as all four girls socked her. You do not fuck with someone that had bees after them. Or a Urameshi.

Millicent immediately got up to avenge Pansy only to be ganged up by Lythiel, Daphne, and Sally-Anne as they lost all inhibitions and decided to beat the stuffing out of the idiot that was disturbing their peace.

"See, guys? You've gotten much stronger over the past days" Aiji beamed. Only to be glared at fiercely by the trio as they stood over a bruised Millicent.

The heavy girl tried to take advantage of the situation, only to be kicked at the temple by Daphne.

Aiji, feeling a little left out, smashed her heel on Millicent's stomach.

K.O. Winners: Lythiel, Daphne, Sally-Anne, and Aiji.

Stacie whimpered, then shot Vince and Greg a quelling 'do as I say or die' look, then the boys lifted the unconscious Pansy and Millicent and went to the infirmary. Stacie followed, grasping at straws for a suitable excuse that wouldn't incriminate her posse or any other Slytherin.

Hey, the may hate each other's guts, but they were still Slytherins, and Slytherins did not sell each other out. Since the rest of the world viewed Slytherins as bastards that have had a place reserved in Hell since they were born – and they're probably right about that, too – Slytherins take care of their own since no one else would.

Of course, that still doesn't change the fact that Slytherins are just as quick to lynch one of their own if they hate one another. Only, it's done in the privacy of their own dorm.

Thankfully, Stacie's story, whatever it would be, would be backed up as there were surprisingly no Gryffindors in class yet, not even the ever prompt Hermione Granger was there.

Later on, everyone found out it was due to a prank pulled by Peeves that caused general tardiness by the entire lion house. Flitwick, whom had not been present to see the inner Slytherin house conflict, had accepted Stacie's excuse that Millicent and Pansy had been pranked by Peeves as well since the poltergeist had tripped the girls and caused them to hit their heads and lose consciousness.

Since the dwarfish teacher was one of the few that actually actively attempted to strengthen inter-House relations without Dumbledore badgering him about it, Flitwick made the Slytherins and Gryffindors pair up with each other to work on the movements of the _Wingardium Leviosa_ spell.

It wasn't so bad for the quartet as Aiji got paired up with Dean Thomas, and the two started debating about which methods were the better ones to use for lower-body strengthening regimens. 'Jocks' Sally-Anne, who was still a bit angered about the bee incident, thought maliciously.

The brunette was thankfully stuck with Parvati Patil, a girl who was neither a complete vapid, pant-chasing neanderthal like Lavender Brown nor an exceedingly anal, goodie-two-shoes like Hermione Granger. They both worked on the movements first until they got it right, "swish and flick" is a rather easy physical concept to grasp after all. Then they began _politely_ discussing what should be done about Peeves. Sally did have to admit, the Indian girl had quite the imagination when it came to retribution, and she even gave the French girl some ideas about how to even the score with Aiji.

Daphne didn't get much work done, much like Aiji didn't. This could be because she was too busy ranting at her partner, Seamus Finnegan, about the evils of bees, hives and demon trainers that didn't understand the words "restraint" or "easy". Seamus didn't really understand what it was all about, but he was all too happy to let the girl fume if it meant they didn't have to work (they weren't being graded) and if she could return the favor and let him rant to her about the insidious, seditious poltergeist.

The one that drew the short straw was poor Lythiel, who got saddled with one clumsy Iphigenie Longbottom. Nothing against the portly girl, but she was a walking magical disaster on the best of days. Now what do you do when you add a silently seething Lythiel in desperate need of a Daphne-esque rant?

Iphigenie thought that Lythiel was mad at _her_, and we all know what happens when Iphigenie gets too flustered while trying to perform even wand movements.

KABOOM!

Iphigenie Longbottom and Lythiel Moon's limp bodies sailed through the air in opposite directions until they fell to the floor. The only evidence to what happened was a scorched old wand that once belonged to the mousy Gryffindor.

The conscious members of the quartet rushed to their fallen comrade while the Gryffindors clambered to Iphigenie's side.

Upon learning from Flitwick that both girls were alright, the entirety of the lion house sagged in relief, blabbering about how glad they were that Iphigenie was alright and what the heck did she do now?

The Slytherins were more subtle about their emotions; some like Blaise, Draco or Morag were poker-faced in light of this scenario.

Daphne, on the other hand, was too busy mothering Lythiel to care about Slytherin aristocratic behavior. The tall girl lightly tapped Lythiel's cheeks, rubbed her arms and back, and slightly rocked her while the light blonde snarled at the closest people to the two girls at the time of the accident for being 'so (censored) (censored) irresponsible, insensitive, and fucking incompetent that they let two classmates nearly get killed!'

Vincent Crabbe, Lavender Brown, Gregory Goyle, and Ronald Weasley were disturbingly reminded of Professor Snape on his first lesson when he tried to pin the blame of Iphigenie's failed potion to Potter, then when he failed to Granger.

A female, eleven-year old, blonde and early-blooming Snape on PMS.

The Slytherin bodyguards were not idiots, they had seen what had happened to Millicent when she tried to attack the newly dubbed 'Silver Quartet.' Even if Greengrass would have more difficulty beating the two of them together, Potter seemed to have no problems with beating the stuffing out of anyone that messed with her cohorts. Shit, that means they couldn't defend themselves with their usual intimidate, rough up, and maim methods. Damn.

Lavender Brown may act like your typical dumb blonde ala Marilyn Monroe style, but she wasn't a total one-dimensional neanderthal. Even though she likes to pretend that she is powerful due to her popularity among girls like her, her instincts know that as far as power and intelligence go, she is rather low on the food chain. She knew a predator when she saw one, and prey like her wouldn't stand a ghost of a chance against Daphne Greengrass. So the blabbermouth, for once, kept her mouth shut. Though, to save face, she did allow an affronted look to be visible.

The gangly, copper-haired sixth Weasley wasn't as dense as people, including his own family, believed. Stubborn to the point of idiocy, yes; proud to the point of being arrogant, he could give the Malfoys competition in that department; but unobservant and moronic? Nope. Seamus _had_ filled him in on Bulstrode's fateful meeting with the corridor's wall courtesy of Potter's right hook, and Dean had informed him as to why Malfoy's apes' upper bodies were on the floor above the Transfiguration classroom. Taking all of this into account, and his little _disagreement_ with the four girls in the same classroom, Ron's chess-based strategic mind pointed out that messing with a currently unstable Greengrass with Moon unconscious will only result in Ron getting the stuffing beaten out of him by Potter. His seldom used and acknowledged self-preservation instincts agreed with it. However, his pride and obstinacy have always had stronger influence on the redhead.

"Now listen you slimy snake, I—" Ron's potential tirade was cut off as he kissed the floor thanks to Aiji's right fist hitting the top of his head.

"Urusai, yaro" Aiji drawled, "your voice is getting on my nerves"

"Ignorance is the only evil in this world" Sally-Anne quoted Socrates, "or in this case, rampant stupidity"

"Seems to me that it does more harm to the people who posses it than to those around them" Daphne sniffed, torn between clobbering the downed redhead for the "slimy snake" comment (she may be a snake, but she is not _slimy_) and guarding Lythiel.

"20 points from Slytherin for the use of violence and 5 points from Gryffindor for that prejudiced comment" Professor Flitwick quipped. "Now that the formalities are over with, perhaps some of you would like to take the young ladies to the Hospital Wing?"

It wasn't a request.

Aiji, with a completely unapologetic attitude over her loss of points, bent over Lythiel and picked her up in her muscled arms bridal-style. Daphne, to everyone's surprise, went up to the unconscious Iphigenie, glared bloody murder at anyone who got in her way, grabbed her arm and hoisted her up so that Iphigenie's body was leaning on Daphne's.

As her friends started for the door, Sally-Anne merely shook her head, "This is too troublesome for words," and lazily made her way to open the door for her friends.

* * *

"Ooh yeah baby" Michiko drooled as she sketched the young men she was… _inspecting_ (coughspyingcough), "That's it onii-chan, show mama what a sweet package you've got"

Said young men were none other than Yuusuke and Kurama (in human form), whom were bathing after hours of posing naked for the lecherous priestess. Very dangerous territory, let me tell you.

"Hey, fox-boy, do you ever feel like you're being watched?"

"Don't worry Yuusuke, it's only Michiko-chan"

"We're being peeped at by an a-hundred-year-old hag and you say 'don't worry Yuusuke, it's only Michiko-chan'?" Yuusuke stared at Kurama incredulously, with a bit of jealousy as well. 'How come he feels comfortable enough with her to call her Michiko-chan? He didn't trust me as much when we first met, he only just ran away with the entire 'I don't have time to be arrested' bullshit'

Of course, Yuusuke's jealous mind also ignores that Kurama had also trusted Yuusuke with information about his mother, his past, and his plans with the Forlorn Hope on their third meeting. Never knew you were that insecure, Yuu-chan, to be jealous of an old hag.

"Well, you do have to admit Yuusuke, she is rather good-looking when her illusion works" Kurama smirked, pleased to see the jealousy in his leader's eyes. 'Maybe he _does _have some feelings for me'

'**See, he won't object to us jumping him, so why don't you, your beating around the bush might lose him**'

'Youko, how many times have you seen Yuusuke actually squirm? Besides, this isn't the Makai! I'd probably scar Yuusuke for life if I were to just 'jump him' as you put it'

'**Shuuichi lets set the record straight – and not that way! Though Yuusuke would make a beautiful woman… Ehem, as I was saying, lets set the record straight: Yuusuke, for one, is not your average human that will throw the typical 'you only want me for sex' snit. For two, he's lived in the Makai for two bloody years, and is therefore more than accustomed to youkai mating rituals. And finally, how can you 'scar him for life' as you say if he is already homosexual or bisexual, as is already evidenced from the yaoi manga he enjoys, and you are a good-looking man!**'

'Point' Kurama frowned. Youko did have a point, even before Yuusuke went to the Makai, the green haired boy wasn't favorable of the accepted human courtship rituals. In fact, didn't Keiko-chan once complain about Yuusuke being a little too forward (read: a pervert)?

Kurama unconsciously licked his chops, 'Meh, why not? He's at least partially attracted to me, else he wouldn't be so jealous. If nothing else, this should be fun'

Yuusuke's rather colourful imagination on how to best torture a fox-snagging miko were interrupted when he felt Kurama shift closer to him. Yuusuke was never as thankful to his tanned skin as he was now, hopefully it will cover the sudden redness of his cheeks.

"Kurama? What are you doing?"

The fox smirked, "I just need the soap, Yuusuke. It will be but a moment" Without warning, he pressed his toned chest to Yuusuke's back, rubbing sensually up and down, using the excuse to reach for the aforementioned soap to trace a practiced hand over Yuusuke's muscular arm.

Now, when it comes to abstract things like emotions, Yuusuke is as perceptive as a blind man searching for a black cat in a dark room. It took him months, maybe years, to figure out that Keiko had feelings for him other than friendship, no matter how brief they were.

Nonetheless, when it comes to more tangible aspects, such as sex or physical attraction, Yuusuke is pretty quick on the uptake.

"This 'moment' is taking too damn long, fox-boy" normally the nickname had a flippant, affectionate ring to it; but at that moment, it sounded as if Yuusuke had purred it. He twisted his head to nuzzle Kurama's neck – the ruddy vulpe was still taller than him! – as Yuusuke gained a cheshire cat grin implying that he got the canary, the cream, and the dog took the fall for good measure.

Pleasantly surprised, Kurama brought his free left hand to caress Yuusuke's cheek. "So sorry, Yuusuke. I'm a bit… distracted" he breathed lightly into the toushin's ear, making Yuusuke shiver sensuously in pleasure.

The potential catalyst for a tender relationship was ruined, however, when an unknown ferry girl barged in to the bathhouse screaming, "Tantei Urameshi, Tantei Youko, Miko Tatsumiya! Koenma-sama requires your presence immediately!"

If she was discomforted by the sexy mood she had effectively butchered, she didn't show it. Nor did she pay any heed to the intangible poison and fire coated daggers sent her way from Kurama, Yuusuke, and the hidden Michiko.

"What the (censored) (censored) could be so mother fucking important that the baby has to interrupt us NOW that I've discovered some new material for my manga!" Michiko snarled, her topaz eyes flashing in fury, veins popping near her temples and eyes.

At that moment, the ferry girl could understand just why Tatsumiya Michiko, even if she was a perverted old hag, was respected and feared by many.

'Why didn't Koenma-sama fool her into thinking that the poltergeists or demons stole her manga copyrights or something? Mission success would've increased by eighty-one percent' the ferry girl though cynically.

"YOU LITTLE BITCHY (CENSORED) (CENSORED) (CENSORED) (CENSORED) (CENSORED) (CENSORED) (CENSORED) (CENSORED) CUNT!!" Yuusuke spat out, his sailor's mouth spewing as many coherent curse words as he could connect in one sentence. He continued with Toranian dialect curses mixed with English ones.

Kurama didn't say word, instead he was planning on the most torturous death that he could deal Koenma and the interfering ferry girl. 'I almost had him, I almost had him, I almost had him, and that stupid bitch ruined it!!' the uncharacteristically aggravated thought passed through his mind, reflecting on his sexual frustration and disappointment at not getting a love confession from his potential mate.

The ferry girl, understanding that her afterlife depended on her deviating the target of the trio's fury, decided to give them a hand in finding the one responsible for their wrath, "_Koenma-sama_ requires your presence at his office" she stressed Koenma's name, "He said something about needing the connections straight away and that a contract needed to be signed"

"Is that so?" Yuusuke and Michiko deadpanned, right eyebrows twitching in barely suppressed anger and sexual frustration. 'Dammit, what does a guy have to do to get laid here?!'

'**I'm starting to wonder if the gods have a problem with us indulging in our more primal activities**' Youko balefully commented. He made a mental note to make the toddler pay, one way or another.

"Well then" Kurama softly said, as if the seduction of the love of his life had not been interrupted, "I suppose we'll have words with him, aside from official business that is." His smile was all teeth, like a menacing and dangerous canine baring his sharp fangs.

The ferry girl smiled nervously, "Yes, now if you'll just step onto this portal"

When the trio (the two men not even bothering with clothes) disappeared to give Koenma a piece of their minds and fists, the ferry girl, Kiku, sighed in relief and muttered, "The raise and salary had better be doubled next month as promised, or Youko and Urameshi are going to hear about that bet."

Only money, Kiku's greatest love, companion, and vice, could have compelled her to run interference in a demon courtship. 'Why did Koenma have to be stupid enough to take that bet? By the time Aiji-san's in a…happy relationship… or a BDSM one, whichever works… I'll be dead!' Kiku sighed at her boss' stupidity. If she's lucky, she might come off richer for it, but when the trio, Jaganshi Hiei, and Urameshi Aiji find out… she didn't want to think about it.

'For now' Kiku smiled in ecstasy as she patted her grey-violet obi, namely were she had her first pre-payment for meddling, "A mark, a yen, a buck, or a pound, that clinking, clanging, clunking sound, it makes the world go 'round!" she happily sang.

* * *

"Why did bishoujo-chan use the bee swellings as an excuse to cut flying classes?" Aiji scratched her head in wonder, that class sounded like fun.

"Last I heard from the pureblood grapevine, Sally has an extreme case of vertigo" Daphne shrugged. She herself had covered the swellings in her face with her long hair and she had hidden her equally swelled hands behind her back when the girls visited the Hospital Wing.

Mediwitch Poppy Pomfrey seemed to be under the impression that any injury or malady had to be immediately treated and then weakened with days' worth of bedrest. This would be heaven for Aiji, if only to cut annoying classes (coughHistoryofMagiccough), if it weren't for the fact that the Mediwitch could also spot a fraud ten-thousand miles away.

The old hag was the antithesis of the sweet-tempered Yukina: Poppy Pomfrey was harsh, with a no-nonsense manner about her that reminded Aiji of Genkai. Let's not forget that the woman was also as territorial as lion, barring her fangs and claws at anyone foolish enough to question her authority under her domain. In other words: her patients were her patients, dammit, and anyone who says otherwise will be treated to her "special medical treatment" (also known to keep the fakers from pursuing such a foolish plan).

Sally-Anne, whose mother did not raise a fool, took advantage of her infernal "training session" and her "battle scars" to skip flying. Although, all of the Slytherin girls privately thought that Pomfrey was not convinced with the "misfired and misenchanted spell" ruse, which was odd considering Sally-Anne's proficient double-dealing skills. But according to the Hogwarts grapevine, unless if the cause was life-threatening and/or pertained to Quidditch, the residential Mediwitch didn't give a toss as to _why_ the patient was injured and the _how_ was only required if it wasn't obvious.

So, without further ado, Daphne and Aiji entered the Quidditch pitch with the rest of the students.

There were two parallel lines of old, battered brooms. On the right side was a swarm of gold and red – "Tacky colour combination" Daphne noted, "and it doesn't do any favors to Weasley's complexion and hair" – on the left was a horde of silver and green – "Somehow, Davis manages to make even respectable House colours clash" Daphne vindictively criticized her rival's minion, "must be the make-up overabundance and the out-of-date hairdo. The last time it was fashionable was in the fifties."

Some students were excited about flying, showing off, or just plain doing something new and wicked as is the case with most muggleborns.

Others were nervous about the whole concept of flying, were apprehensive about performing poorly in front of their peers, or just plain scared of heights.

Certain people from Slytherin, though not many, were content to keep impassive, stoic facades in front of predators and prey alike.

But one thing that both groups of people had in common were the wary glances, sometimes coupled with disdainful sniffs or hateful scowls, sent towards the opposing House.

Aiji privately thought that the Gryffindors and Slytherins looked like two gangs about to unleash bloodshed on one another. All that was left was for the chosen leaders of each gang to come up front, insult each other, and start the fight by throwing the first hits.

'Where can I sign up?' beryl eyes glinted with excitement at the thought.

Sadly, it wouldn't come true. Because Fate is a picky bitch that decides when and where the real excitement can begin and of course the spoiled brat just can't agree with the majority out of pure selfishness. Hence why hawk-eyed Madame Xiomara Hooch entered and broke Aiji's hope of senseless violence occurring in the Quidditch pitch. Kisama.

"Alright, everyone get a broom. We don't have time to waste" her deep voice booked no argument, like the unforgiving gravel squishing a fallen fruit. "Stand next to a broom, hold your hand out and say 'Up!'"

"Up!" a chorus of voices resonated throughout the pitch.

With very little results: only six people had managed to get their brooms to be summoned to their hands. Xiomara sighed, this always happened every year, what made this task worse was that normally the ones who succeeded were good flyers and Quidditch players of their own right, and as a consequence, usually arrogant and unhelpful about it.

Draco Malfoy, Theodore Nott, and Blaise Zabini's success didn't come as a shock to her; she had already heard their boasts all the way from the Great Hall, and these children were not so stupid to bluff when there would be a public demonstration, their pride was at stake. Gryffindor muggleborn Dean Thomas was a pleasant surprise. Xiomara briefly recalled that the boy was a 'soccer' player and fan, 'Maybe this muggle sport is similar enough to Quidditch for Thomas to be so at ease with the broom.'

The last two, however, were eyebrow raisers. The other two to succeed were Daphne Greengrass and Alyssa Potter. It was a well known fact that ever since Greengrass had gained the protection of Alyssa "Monster Strength" Potter, she had coveted the title of Slytherin Princess. So what was the prissy, overly feminine girl's secret here? Aren't girls like her usually too good for sports? 'I really must stop thinking in stereotypes.'

Alyssa Potter was an enigma on this subject, and every other for that matter. On the one hand, Xiomara had expected that, at best, she would inherit her father's talent for flying but be somewhat awkward from lack of practice and knowledge of flying broomsticks. At worst, she expected a horrible flyer like her mother, who would later turn up her nose at Quidditch and flying, deeming it a sport "where macho men can nearly get killed just to show off."

Considering the girl's devil-may-care, rebellious attitude; Xiomara and the rest of the staff had deducted that she was more of a James than a Lily. Of course Minerva, Pomona, Argus and the rest of the staff were waiting with dread for the day that she would start pranking like her father. Surprisingly enough, Severus seemed downright calm about that, Xiomara wondered what that greasy old bat was hiding this time.

Potter, it seemed, had inherited her father's latent ability to fly and fly good; as this exercise was a rather accurate indicator of someone's potential and/or experience with flying. If this was indeed Potter's first encounter with a broom then Xiomara could safely deduct that the dwarfish girl could be one of the best flyers of this lot.

By the time the lanky woman finished her ponderings, the rest of the class had effectively, more or less, summoned their brooms to their hands.

"Straddle the brooms and get into position, I will go around and correct stances" Xiomara allowed herself the rare opportunity in her teaching career to let out a dirty broom joke. Meh, it's not like any of the kids will notice.

Aiji, however, recognized the joke. 'No thanks, I'd rather straddle someone else' beryl eyes laughed at her private filthy jest as her lip quirked up to her customary smirk.

"Do I want to know?" Daphne raised a light eyebrow.

"Usually, city girls straddle other things than horses and brooms" Aiji smirked, "Or should I say other _people_"

Daphne snorted in a decidedly unladylike manner, "Are all city girls as perverted as you?"

"I'm just special Daphne-nee-chan, let's leave it at that"

"Indeed, and are you sure you haven't straddled someone before?" Daphne gestured at Aiji near perfect stance on the broom, but not before sending her an impish smirk.

"Not too different from _straddling_ motorcycles and bicycles" Aiji leered, drawing out the word "straddling" for all it was worth, "though huge phoenixes and tigers are much more comfortable"

Any witty, or what she hoped was witty, reply that Daphne had on the tip of her tongue died as Madame Hooch approached them to correct their stances. Oh well, the punch line was overused in the conversation anyhow.

Daphne had gotten two thumbs up for correct posture and grip of the broom. Aiji, surprising both the teacher and the student, got the same evaluation.

Both girls merely shrugged off the oddity.

"When I whistle, all of you will float about a few feet. Make sure it's not higher than ten feet, mind you!" Hooch ordered. Then whistled shrilly.

Aiji felt a rush of wind blow gently against her cheeks and clothes as she levitated to the air. 'This is easy, it's just like flying on Puu-chan. Only there's not as much space'

She grinned at the feeling of gravity trying to pull her downwards that she felt in her stomach. Despite the sensation, Aiji rather enjoyed the feathered feeling in her limbs. No wonder Jin loved to take off into the air so much.

Grinning, she turned to look at where Daphne was, only to see twinkling jade eyes gazing at her knowingly.

Instinctively commanding the tattered broom to fly in her friend's direction, Aiji met Daphne half-way as the blonde raised a happy eyebrow at Aiji's intuitive talent on the broom.

"You sure you've never ridden a broom before?"

"Positive." Aiji grinned, "Never said anything about motorcycles, though"

"And that makes all the difference" Daphne giggled, "Won't poor Madame Hooch be disappointed to learn that it's not talent but good adaptation skills that you possess"

"And you're gonna enjoy every minute of her disillusion, arentcha?" Aiji's upper-lip quirked in amusement, "And you call _me_ a sadist"

"Look at you! Using big words like 'disillusion,' what would your brother say?" Daphne deftly eluded the implication to her hidden in plain sight sadism. Aiji snorted at her friend's innocent seeming face, knowing for a fact that Daphne was a vicious, not yet murderous, little weasel. Which is probably why Aiji loves her and gets along with her.

"Not my fault that you and the girls use those high-class words all the fucking time" Aiji whined, though she'd rip anyone's head off their shoulders for pointing that out.

An ear-splitting shriek from Lavender Brown and Stacie Davis turned the girls' attention to the rest of their classmates. Peeves the Poltergeist, also known as Hogwarts' Eternal Thorn at the Students' Hides, was happily throwing paint balls at the boys and girls, Slytherin and Gryffindors, alike.

For some of the less… experienced or aerial savvy students, their fate was to fall off their brooms from ten feet plus. Fortunately, not only was the fall minimal, but Xiomara Hooch was jumping around, waving her wand to levitate the fallen students to safety. Hence why she couldn't do anything but curse up a blue streak over Peeves' dubious parentage, regardless of the minors in the vicinity.

Aiji felt a newfound sense of respect towards her flying instructor. Some of the curses she used as she levitated Lavender Brown, Stacie Davis, Hermione Granger, Seamus Finnegan, Dean Thomas, Ronald Weasley, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Parvati Patil, and Morag McDougal (in that order) were unheard of even by her.

Draco Malfoy, to avoid getting his clothes even smudged, had quickly landed the minute he saw Crabbe and Goyle fall. He was joined by Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott, the latter wanting to prevent a fall of any kind while the former had both boys' convictions. So much for House solidarity.

Aiji and Daphne became a part of the melee as the blonde's outfit became soaked in a combination of a garish pink that made the eyes burn and a soft pastel orange.

"You little wretched, _dickless_, son-of-a-bitch! Do you have _any_ (censored) (censored) (censored) _idea_ how _hard_ it is to get _paint_ out of (censored) (censored) fine tailored _clothes_!" Daphne roared like a provoked puma as she added some more colourful descriptions that involved Peeves' dubious parentage, dubious manhood, dubious previous humanity, and dubious _anything_. Somehow, through all that and the slippery paint that managed to wedge its way to the old broom, Daphne managed to stay upright and reach for her wand without toppling over.

Must have been due to Aiji's strong hand holding her when Daphne's legs began to shake with the effort of keeping the blonde airborne.

Now, you can say anything you want about Urameshi Atsuko, Yuusuke and Aiji. They are vicious, violent, lazy, sadists, and a full spectrum of negative connotations. But one thing that they all share in common is that, when you earn their trust and loyalty (which is a very hard thing to do, might I add), then they gain the moral superiority of a dog when it comes to you. Why moral superiority? Because dogs, unlike humans, can be tied up in the cold rain miles away from their masters' house, and yet they will not only break the chains, but also return to their masters as if nothing had happened. Atsuko, Yuusuke and Aiji are like these ever-loyal dogs when it comes to the people they love and trust.

Therefore, it would come to no surprise to people that know the Urameshi family, like Hiei who was watching this with notable morbid enjoyment, that Aiji would charge at Peeves as soon as Daphne had her wand out and regained her iron-grip on her broom.

Normally, no matter how strong the human, their physical attacks would have no effect on a ghost as they are made of nothing but residual reiki and, if they had it in their former life, magic. The reason why normal humans had the misconception that only demons and gods could touch a ghost was because these two could use their youki or other energy sources constantly so their physical hits were coated with said energy. Ergo, the clashing energies would cause the ghost pain.

Even though two years ago Aiji's primary job as a Reikai Tantei made her more into a sort of demon-hunter than anything else, she still knew the basics about how to deal with ghosts. Which is why her hard-core punch was coated with more than enough reiki/youki to make Peeve's spectral nose bleed for the first time in centuries.

"ASSHOLE!!" Aiji roared like a rampaging demoness. Using only her powerful thigh muscles to keep herself attached to the broom and steer it effectively and competently for a beginner, Aiji used her free rough hands to grab Peeves and throw him in Daphne's direction.

Daphne, while a complete slouch when it came to defense and practical or everyday spellwork, was surprisingly good at curses and offensive spells. So poor Peeves received more than a few nasty jinxes, hexes, and curses from the enraged blonde.

Some of the spells were boiling spells, fire spells (she was quite proficient at those, must be due to her temper), wind spells, cutting hexes, organ rearranging curses, and even some castrating curses.

Peeves, using his magic and reiki to regrow some important bits while still trying to defend himself from the murderous gorgon-incarnate, didn't notice the diminutive Amazon demoness summon a spiked mace from her dorms with her wand.

So he was understandably surprised when said spiked mace, which was almost as tall as half an Aiji, broke through the lower walls of the castle and went straight to the girl's hand. Nor could we hold his wits, which were numbed from the assault of the blonde and trying to defend/repair himself, accountable when he didn't move as Aiji pounded him the reiki/youki coated mace.

The mace was as heavy as it was long. Any normal human without physical training or endurance would strain their muscles from just trying to lift it even half a millimeter. It was purposefully made that way so that only Aiji could wield it, therefore, no one else could use her weapon against her. And magic didn't count, it amplified the weapon if used directly, even if you only used a levitating charm on it, so the spell is transformed as an energy source to hit normally impalpable opponents, like ghosts for example.

Koenma had gone on a limb to acquire it when he was informed that there were ghosts, indiscreet ghosts at that matter, at Hogwarts. Knowing that Aiji's temper would cause her to lash out and hurt the ghosts, even though they'd probably deserve it, Koenma figured that it'd be easier to explain having an artifact that can hurt ghosts rather than have Aiji explain how she can physically hurt impalpable beings.

He had to negotiate with a greedy ferry-girl named Kiku who was the ex-assistant of a professional, former-Reikai employed ghost hunter (kind of like what Botan was to Yuusuke when he began his career as a Tantei).

Since said ghost hunter, a woman named Matsuyama Setsuko, had a bit of a falling out with Enma over her job, she was now a free-lancing supernatural hunter that wouldn't do business with the Reikai unless if: A) it's one of those apocalypse moments like Sensui's little escapade, or B) if the price is worth it. The latter was one of the reasons as to why she still kept contact with her former assistant Kiku. That, and the two women got along like a burning skyscraper.

The price was very, very high. As Koenma had to pay _both_ Kiku for convincing Setsuko of the deal, Setsuko for the deal itself, and he had to pay Setsuko _again_ for the proper modifications to the mace.

Aiji, by all means, should not have been able to summon it with a spell. But, as Kurama had smartly pointed it out, it would hardly be wise for Aiji to go around totting a huge, obvious mace in a school.

Koenma had been ready to chuck the plan altogether when he saw the final price of the damned thing, but he did not fancy facing the overprotective former Tanteis' wrath over not doing his best to arm their 'little sister' for her first solo mission.

Hey, newfound emotional maturity or not doesn't change the fact that he's a coward at heart.

At least Setsuko's grudge with Enma meant that he didn't have to pay her to keep it quiet from him or the other higher ups. Kiku, on the other hand, was bribed with a so-called "mission" that was actually a bureaucratic cover-up for a one-month prized vacation in the Islas Malvinas, room and board already paid. In other words, a paid vacation. An improbable luxury for anyone under the slave-driver's employment.

What were these modifications? Simple, the only magic that could be used, that_ won't _be transformed into an amplifier or energy to coat the weapon, and has an effect on the mace would be Aiji's. Hence why Aiji's summoning charm actually worked on it.

'Bludgers, even if they are inanimate objects, deserve to be respected' was Peeves' astonishingly coherent thought, as he was being knocked and hit like said inanimate balls by Aiji's mace. Daphne joined the foray by throwing impediment jinxes and other curses.

The effect? Peeves was thrown from girl to girl like a ping-pong ball. A beaten, bloodied, scorched, wet, cut-up, misty ping-pong ball.

With an angry roar, Aiji hit Peeves with more force than she intended to, as the poltergeist sailed above Daphne's head before she could fire another spell. Weary from all of the draining spell casting she'd done in one sitting, Daphne huffed and panted from exhaustion, red-faced and sweaty. 'I need a bath' she thought, the black anger that had sustained her even when her endurance had burned out dissipated a bit now that Peeves was out of her sight.

Aiji was about to chase to poltergeist with her mace if it were not for the "Miss Potter, Miss Greengrass, get down here this instant!" that distracted her.

A calm and collected Professor Severus Snape stood out like a sore thumb among the stupefied, scared, and awed crowd of spectators. Even Madame Xiomara Hooch was gaping like a fish out of water at the angry display towards the poltergeist. Never mind that she had wanted something like that to happen to Peeves ever since she was a young, impressionable Hufflepuff second-year that was on the receiving end of one of his pranks. She never really did forgive him for that one.

"Stay outta this, teach! I'm still not done with that asshole for nearly makin' Daphne-nee-chan fall off her broom!"

Red-faced from both tiredness and flattery, Daphne tugged at Aiji's sleeve to get the greenhead's attention, "It's fine Aiji, you can drop it. I'd say that we've done enough for now. Besides, I'm wiped out from all the spells I've cast and I want to also be able to cause some harm to that damned poltergeist."

Daphne may not be a naturally forgiving individual, she was opposite of that to be perfectly honest, but she also knew when to draw the line. Namely when her petty vendettas can get her friends into trouble. This was one of those times.

Unable to say no to that visage that so reminded her of both Yukina-nee-chan and her 'kaa-san at that moment, Aiji acquiesced with grumbles and her typical senselessly defiant nature. She has to keep and win face in some way, right?

When the girls landed, Snape grabbed them by the elbows and dragged them away from the pitch. When Xiomara tried to protest to… what? Save the girls a detention for the violence they caused? Keep them in her class?

No one will ever know as the minute Xiomara opened her wind-beaten lips, Severus responded with a "As their Head of House, I have an urgent matter to speak with Potter and Greengrass in private, Madame Hooch," then he swept away with the girls in tow.

They made a curious, yet frightening sight to any passer-by. Severus Snape on his own was more than enough to make anyone jump out of his way, what with his ever-present scowl and his nearly palpable cloud of cold anger that stood above him. Coupled up with a paint-covered, angry but trying not to show it by acting innocent Daphne, and a giant mace totting, snarling Aiji; the three Slytherins were given a very wide berth.

They neared a classroom, one that was the Ancient Runes classroom taught by Professor Pasiphae Heiferson. Snape, with the arrogance of a Malfoy, opened the door to the classroom and asked in a tone that booked no argument, "Professor Heiferson, may I borrow Flint for a moment." Though it was worded like a question, it was obvious to everyone that it was a command.

Pasiphae glared at Severus, more than a little vexed that her lesson was interrupted by her ex-housemate. If it weren't for the fact that she feared retribution from him, she would've given the arrogant man more than just a piece of her mind. "Yes, of course, Professor Snape, and while you're there why don't you just dismiss my class while you're at it" the sarcasm was so thick, you could make a fog out of it.

The reason why so many Gryffindors believed she was once one of them was due to the fact that she hated the ornery Potions Master. It wasn't simple House rivalry, she just plain hated him ever since she met him. Rubbed her the wrong way, that he did.

Severus, seeing his chance to degrade a former childhood tormentor, addressed the class with the authority as one of the Head of Houses. Who just happened to have the highest rank in the school next to the Headmaster and the Deputy-Headmistress. In other words, he pulled rank over Pasiphae just because he could and out of petty revenge. "Class, you are dismissed from Ancient Runes for the rest of the day. You too, Flint, as soon as we're done with our urgent business."

He then spun around, swishing his robes in trademark billowing manner with the bewildered girls in tow, leaving a fuming Pasiphae radiating killing intent at her former guinea pig.

Confident that Flint would follow, Severus entered an unused classroom with the girls and the lanky boy in tow, spelling the room silent from the outside as he went. No need to let hopeful eavesdroppers think that it's that easy to acquire information with such amateur tricks, that would go against Severus' career to teach students of the harsh world.

"Flint, you mentioned that Bole would be unable to play this year due to the injury he acquired last year and his upcoming NEWTs" Severus never cut the fat, he always went straight to the heart of the matter.

"Yes, sir. The problem is still the same. However, we are hoping that we will gain a talented player at the try-outs" Flint stammered, he was actually aware that they were screwed without Bole.

The Slytherin team was based on two things: brute force and dirty tricks. As the beaters were the ones that required the most brute strength _and_ they could use said brute strength with semi-impunity on other players (the chasers), they were essential to the Slytherin team.

Add the fact that Gryffindor had the "Human Bludgers" Fred and George Weasley on their team and well… Marcus Flint, Slytherin Quidditch Captain, was fucked over side-ways. And he knew it too.

"Unacceptable" Severus grounded out, "you should know better to leave things to something as abstract and finicky as Fate or Luck, especially this late in the game. Fortunately, I've done the work for you, which, I can assure, will not happen again"

At Flint's transparently hopeful glee in his eye, Severus smirked as he delivered a hard pill to swallow at his student.

"Meet your new beater, Alyssa Potter, a first year. And your reserve beater who will hopefully take over Derrick when he graduates next year, Daphne Greengrass, another first year."

"It's Urameshi Aiji, teach." Aiji groaned in annoyance, "Just humor me, will ya?"

Flint's eyes competed with the size of dishes as he contemplated the frail-looking blonde and the dwarfish greenhead. 'Either this is my punishment for not finding a beater earlier or he's grown a sense of humor.'

None of which was likely. Severus was fanatic when it came to Quidditch, if only so he could rub it in Minerva McGonagall and Albus Dumbledore's – though the old fart would never admit to such favoritism towards his old House– faces that Gryffindor lost to them. Risking a win in order to punish a team member is not something that he would do, it'd be far too impractical for the man. And Severus Snape's sense of humor was more subtle and morbid, usually pertaining to other people's misery.

So it was with an internal cry of denial that Flint came to the startling conclusion that Severus Snape was serious.

"You can't be serious"

"Deathly so"

"But professor" Flint pleaded with the man, "These girls don't look like they can even lift a bat, never-mind hit a bludger properly!"

"For your sake, teme, I hope you're not calling me weak" Aiji snarled, her eyes flashing in outrage. 'I did _not_ fight my way to the top of the demon food chain to be called weak by a puny human boy!'

"Don't you know, Flint" Daphne smiled sweetly, her fatigue giving way to her sparked wrath at being underestimated, especially after the Hellish morning training she had suffered through, on top of having her clothes ruined. "Appearances can be deceiving" with an unladylike pop, she cracked her knuckles in reminiscence to Aiji.

Flint, sensing the danger but not wanting to believe that two little eleven year olds could harm him, did the stupidest thing he had ever done in his short life, "Oh? And what are you going to do? Hit me?" He guffawed.

Faster than the eye can blink, Flint was backed up into the wall by Aiji, her fist breaking the hard stone of the wall next to Flint's right cheek. In order to keep eye-level with Flint, Aiji balanced herself with the mace burrowed into the floor, her body using it as a pole.

"Call me weak again, _teme_, and it'll be your face next time" Aiji menacingly growled.

"Probably more than that" Daphne's simpering smile was at odds with her willow wand sparkling in preparation of a hex.

Severus, now that he was taking Aiji seriously as just another of his Slytherins, smirked at Flint's discomfort. As far as Inner-House conflicts go, Severus had always been an advocate of survival of the fittest. He may defend his snakes to death from the other Houses and the staff, but that doesn't mean that he mothers them. That was more James or Lily's area than his, anyway.

Forcing his mind to forget his ex-lover and best-friend respectively, Severus addressed Flint one final time, "For your sake, Flint; Potter, at least, at most, both, had better be ready for the Gryffindor versus Slytherin match. Your Captainship depends on it"

On that cheery note, Severus left the three snakes in the abandoned classroom, robe billowing as he went.

Flint gazed at the two dangerous and angry girls he was stuck with, both physically and figuratively. 'Well shit.'

* * *

"Alright you two" Flint stonily said, hoping to regain his "I'm the Slytherin Quidditch Captain, _don't_ fuck with me newbie" attitude.

It had taken a while of convincing the girls to let him go without violence, and _then_, even more time to get the three of them to the newly vacant Quidditch Pitch.

Of course, there was the extra time wasted when Aiji went to the Slytherin dorms to drop off her mace. Let's not even mention the time wasted when Daphne whined about her stained clothes and demanded permission to change and bathe. Flint only allowed her because Aiji was looking for any excuse to rearrange his face… and Daphne threatened to chop his manhood off.

Not that Flint will ever admit to caving in to two eleven-year olds' demands.

The only other spectator was Madame Xiomara Hooch, who, curious, had demanded to know what was going on. Once she attained the desired information, she then proceeded to blackmail Flint into letting her stay and watch.

Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, as Professor Snape had always given him special passes for Quidditch, so long as he led the team competently to victory that is. However, since this time he had _not_ given Marcus that little piece of impunity that allowed him to play hooky all he wanted, his only choice was to have the flying instructor watch (or "monitor") so that he won't get a detention for skipping his classes unauthorized.

'Damned woman' "Both of you grab a broom and hover at _least_ thirty feet into the air." If Snape had been impressed by their strength, which he somehow doubted in Greengrass' case, said strength would be useless in the game if they were afraid of heights.

When the girls followed his instructions without mishap, Marcus kicked off the ground with his own broom, followed closely by Xiomara.

"Now, how familiar are you two with Quidditch, the Beating position in particular?" Normally, he wouldn't have to ask that, but as Potter's background was a blackhole of unknowns, it'd be safer to assume that she didn't know about the sport.

"Beaters can only directly hit the Chasers, namely when they have the quaffle. Any other player has to be indirectly hit unless if you want a foul" Aiji drawled. She had learned a bit about Quidditch from Daphne and the murmurings about it from the other students. The rules of the Beaters were the only ones she cared about, as that was a position that basically let the players unleash bloodthirsty violence with semi-impunity.

"Very good" Marcus nodded, glad that the newbie had caught on to the loopholes without him saying a word. 'This just might be easier than I thought'

Xiomara pursed her lips, also catching on to the implication Aiji made. 'Is it too much to ask for a clean game with this lot?'

"I am both the Quidditch Captain and one of the three Chasers" Marcus continued, "Thus we are going to practice on how well you can aim and on your teamwork. Technically, Potter is going to partner up with Derrick for the remainder of the year if no accidents happen. However, as he will no longer be with us next year, we can safely assume that as the reserve Beater, Greengrass will take his place anyway."

With an almost dismissive flick of his hazelwood wand, he unsealed the lock and clasp that kept one of the bludgers inside the hard box still on the ground.

Catching on to his strategy as he handed the girls their respective bats, Xiomara gave him an imperceptible nod, contracting her stance in preparation for the onslaught. She _had_ agreed to let him, for the most part, handle the newbies' training. If nothing else, she was a woman of her word. Even if she disagreed with his "Swim or Die" methods.

Besides, Potter may have the strength, but Peeves was unprepared and therefore an easy target. This was only Potter's second time on a broom to boot. Not to mention that Greengrass only had good flying and offensive spellwork going for her. So what should she, Xiomara Hooch, ex-Hufflepuff genius Seeker, ex-Holyhead Harpies' Seeker extraordinaire, have to worry about?

Xiomara quickly learned to never ever underestimate Daphne Greengrass and Alyssa Potter ever again.

By the time a half hour was up, Xiomara and Marcus were doing their best to avoid that one single bludger.

What Aiji lacked in finesse and control, she made up with brute force and a disturbingly accurate aim. She'd wanted to beat Flint's face in ever since an hour ago and she did not appreciate in the least bit the underestimation in Hooch's eyes, no siree bob.

Daphne had the same sentiments as her friend in regards to her new Quidditch Captain and Instructor. Unleashing her anger in her trusty wand, she aimed a very powerful _reducto_ curse at the box containing the other bludger.

When the box exploded, releasing the second bludger, both instructor and captain were distracted from their evading. Aiji promptly took advantage of that as she hit the bludger with enough force to hit Flint's right side.

CRACK!!

"MOTHER FUCKING SHIT!!" Flint shrieked in pain as his right arm flopped to his side, broken. Hooch paled a ghastly shade of white, panic and adrenaline rising in preparation to flee Potter's monstrous shots.

However, since her attention was on Aiji, she didn't notice Daphne striking the second bludger in her direction either.

Hooch let out a panicked yelp as the heavy ball smashed into the tail-end of her broom. Broom and woman rolled in a controlled-at-the-last minute aerial backflip, regaining balance and focus on the game at hand.

After a couple of similar tactics, Xiomara immediately figured out the girls' strategy.

Potter was the power behind them as her assassin shots distracted, wounded, and damaged their opponents beyond a novice's capacity. Greengrass, on the other hand, had no power behind her shots; however, she worked well with Potter as she used the other girl's forceful ones to sneak in some of her own shots to the unsuspecting and vulnerable players.

For all their choppy, beginner's faults and over-enthusiasm, those two worked well in a spontaneous, adaptable sort of way.

'It's something akin to fighting a wolf and a fox at the same time' Xiomara theorized, 'You're too busy trying to evade the wolf's fangs and claws that you don't notice the fox sneaking in a bite.'

Unfortunately for Xiomara, just because she was able to asses the strategy didn't mean that she could beat it. It took nearly all of her left-over experience as an ex-Seeker for the ruthless Harpies to avoid a bone-breaking hit. It also didn't help that ever since her forced retirement from Professional Quidditch – as one of the eldest professional players, she had only managed to keep up until she turned 43 – she hadn't played in the same hardcore intensity since then.

So it didn't surprise Xiomara, though it did sucker punch her ego something fierce, that while she was able to evade the fast, forceful but obvious shots from Potter, she was smashed by Greengrass' sneak attacks more times than she cared to remember.

Flint wasn't doing as well as Hooch, though. With a broken right arm (which just so happens to be his dominant arm, go figure), the lack of professional Quidditch playing years with a high league team under his belt, and his focus skewed due to the intense pain on his arm; it was no wonder that he was weakened after the next three sneak attacks from Greengrass and another power blow from Potter.

After he regained his balance from nearly falling due to another blow from Potter at the tail-end of his broom, Marcus didn't have the time to turn his head as he was victim to Greengrass' next sneak attack. This time he was hit at the temple.

Ears ringing, eyes spotting odd colors and shapes, and skin numb from the strategically placed shot, Marcus was even more vulnerable to another hit that would most likely finish him off.

A situation that Aiji casually took advantage of, as her final shot at Flint was aimed at the front of his broom, alarmingly close to where his left hand was at.

While Daphne distracted Hooch by forcing her to dodge another bludger from the blonde, Aiji's own bludger hit its target with the same force as when it broke Marcus' arm.

In other words, remember the front part of Marcus' broom? Destroyed.

In a defensive reaction, his left hand had abandoned its post on the broom seconds before the bludger hit its target. With only his knees holding him upright, his left arm pulled back enough to unhinge his center of gravity, and the front of the broom broken, Flint lost his balance and fell off his broom.

Xiomara saw this too late, but she flattened herself on her own Cleensweep 7 in order to dive like a bullet in Flint's direction. Daphne, in a moment of pure vindictive blind anger and unaware of Flint's condition, decided to strike her at the tail-end again, where Xiomara was the most vulnerable.

Realizing seconds later in horror what her unreasonable, childish temper produced, Daphne cursed vehemently enough to make a drunken sailor blush. She pulled her willow wand out of her sleeve and began shooting explosive curses at the illusive bludger. None of her spells would hit, and she became all the more horrified as each second passed.

Aiji took careful aim, as if she were to shoot an 'all or nothing' rei-gun, and hit her bludger with as much force as she dared to use without destroying it. It sailed in unbelievable speed as it surpassed even Daphne's bludger's in velocity.

Then, it did the improbable.

Aiji's bludger hit Daphne's with enough force to, not only veer them both off course, but dent them as well.

Fortunately for Daphne, Hooch was too focused on catching Flint to notice the attack altogether. Still the blonde couldn't help but feel an acute sense of guilt for nearly killing her in a cruel tantrum.

Aiji glanced at her, but instead of accusing her or judging her, the greenhead had a glance filled with understanding. It'd be hypocritical of Aiji to judge, after all, she herself had been known for her overkill methods as a juvenile delinquent. Especially at the beginning of her "career."

Besides, she had meant for that shot to make Flint fall off his broom. So why should Daphne feel as though the greenhead has any room to judge?

By the time Flint was at ten feet above the ground, Xiomara was close enough to grab him and haul him onto her broom. Her 64 year-old muscles protested at the untapped since 21 years strength she was using. Burning fire kindled up her shaking arms as she used all of her strength to pull Flint up.

Sitting upright with a dazed Flint on her lap, the ex-Holyhead Harpy checked on the girls to see them heading their way. The bludgers, for some odd reason, were far away from the site. 'They probably knocked them off course when Flint fell off' Xiomara logically concluded.

"You two get down to the ground, that's enough of a demonstration for today" Xiomara bellowed, taking charge, "Don't worry about the bludgers, I'll take care of 'em later!"

For once obeying a teacher without contradicting them, and because she felt a bit guilty about Flint (after all, wizard or not, he's not a super-powered human like Kazuma-nii that can have a hole in his stomach yet still fight), Aiji silently followed Daphne down to the ground.

Once the four of them were securely on terra firma, Xiomara eyed them critically for a moment before speaking, "Normally I'd punish someone for such violence, however, since you two are beginners and weren't in control of the situation and overestimated our ability to dodge or take your hits; I'll let it slide."

Aiji didn't look down in shame nor did she twitch. She merely gazed back, almost as if daring Hooch to criticize them all the more.

Daphne, though she felt a bit of guilt at her action against this woman, also felt the stirrings of anger begin to form as she reprimanded them. Hello? Is Hooch not an ex-Quidditch player? Does she not know that Beaters are _supposed_ to be rapacious and brutal?

Nevertheless, Daphne kept her head bowed down in mock-submissiveness. That way Hooch couldn't see her eyes burn in anger. Daphne hated being in the wrong, even more so when people point it out.

"Come with me" Xiomara pulled out her own cottonwood wand, pointed it at Flint and "_Mobilicorpus_." Briskly power-walking to the castle in her usual no-nonsense manner, it was a wonder that the two girls managed to keep up with her.

But keep up they did, although Daphne was red-faced and panting from the effort, Aiji merely followed the long strides seamlessly with her hands behind her head.

Since nearly all the students were supposed to be in class, they didn't meet up with anyone in the corridors. In mere minutes, they made it to the Hospital Wing.

Xiomara took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for another face off with Poppy "Miss anti-Quidditch" Pomfrey.

"Poppy" Xiomara commenced with a polite, but hurried, smile, "I have a patient for you"

The sixty-four-year-old nurse glared with harsh eyes as she glanced at the tired Daphne and the dazed, levitated Flint. "What happened this time, Xiomara? Another Quidditch training accident no doubt?" the sarcasm rolled off her tongue like a fallen apple rolled on the ground.

Xiomara winced, already hearing Poppy's trademark "That damned game should be _banned_" before the conversation started. This was why she hated it when students got overly violent, not because she believed it was bad for the game (she was an ex-professional for Hecate's sake!), but because then she'd have to deal with Poppy.

The two ex-Hufflepuffs were very similar in personality what with their no-nonsense, focused professionalism, competitive natures and stubborn hotheadedness. And that was probably why they rubbed each other the wrong way. In being so alike that their worst qualities were displayed for the other to see, and the pro versus anti Quidditch arguments didn't help, it was reasonable to see why the two women almost always came close to blows at the drop of a hat.

Aiji had sensed this, it was so obvious in the air they all breathed that even she noticed these things, and sat back to watch the show in amusement.

"It was only a little incident, the two newbies got a little too overenthusiastic at their practice match and Flint underestimated them, is all." Xiomara simpered, with a layer of steely undertone that dared Poppy to contradict her.

And contradict her she did, "Oh, really? Is that all? And here I was certain that this boy here got his head cracked open and his arm snapped in half. And I was certain that the girl was dehydrated and fatigued. But, my bad! I'm just a school nurse, what the Hell do I know about injuries?"

"No need to get catty Poppy. And from my experience, Healers tend to exaggerate a patient's wounds due to their extensive knowledge and overactive imagination!" Xiomara snarled.

"Overactive imagination, eh? Then why did you bring them here if their wounds are not serious!" Poppy screeched back. It seemed like they had forgotten the three students in the room and were about to come to blows at any second now.

"OH SHUT UP YOU TWO" Daphne's exasperated cry interrupted them, "You two can kill each other later, when Flint is conscious and healed" She glared at them, her voice booking no argument.

"The sad thing is" Aiji mumbled loud enough to be heard by everyone, "that _they're_ the adults here"

Flushing in mortification, the two women turned away from each other and made themselves useful.

Xiomara stared at an invisible point in the wall to prevent herself from turning to her hated colleague and starting something again.

Poppy first disinfected the cut on Flint's temple and sealed it, the bone was unharmed so it went without a hitch. She then mended his broken arm and spelled a cast on it, all the while giving Xiomara an accusing glare. Giving him and the exhausted Daphne a Pepper-Up potion, Poppy turned her full attention to the troll-faced boy.

"Don't even think about using your right arm for _anything_ for the next two days. If you must take notes, use a dictaquill or have someone make copies of theirs. And no flying, no dangerous stunts and _no Quidditch_! Do we understand one another?"

"WHAT! Are you out of your mind, old hag!?" Flint paled, this couldn't be happening to him, "I've gotta train these two newbies pronto! My Captainship, hell, maybe my spot on the team is at stake here!!"

"Good" Poppy bit out, "maybe _this _will keep you uninjured and away from that spirits-be-damned sport! Consider this cast and the lack of immediate magical healing as _motivation_ to not end up back here because of that _game_!!"

"Now listen here Poppy" Xiomara butted in, "You have _no right_ to do this!!"

"Don't I!?" Poppy snarled, "Well, guess again Miss Retired, I do, and even if I didn't I'd still go through with this"

While the two women were duking it out, as usual, Aiji and Daphne glanced at each other once. Then they grabbed Marcus' good arm and dragged him off. Marcus stared at the hands leading him away from the Hospital Wing stupidly, not comprehending what kind of twilight zone he had been dropped off on.

'Okay, let's recap and see what the hell is wrong with today' Marcus dazedly thought.

First off, his Head of House, Professor Severus Snape, had found two new Beaters for him. Okay, a bit too generous of the man, but considering how close the Slytherin vs. Gryffindor match was, it could just be due to desperation. Alright, Marcus can live with that, it seems borderline normal.

Second off, though, is where things snowball down to hell. The Beater that's supposed to replace Bole is none other than Alyssa Potter. Not only is Snape risking the game to a first year, but to the daughter of his mortal enemy to boot. Not to mention that the second Beater is a slight little girl that is only good at flying and backstabbing.

Then, Potter breaks his arm, his broom, and Greengrass nicks him at the temple.

And now, he has to train the weasel and the bull on how to properly play with the team in two weeks minimum. With a broken arm.

To make things even stranger, Hooch and Pomfrey, two staff members that have never publicly shown _any _hostility, are right now bickering like schoolgirls on a cat fight.

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Marcus allowed the girls to lead him away until they were near the Slytherin dorms. Then he stopped… and he was dragged by an absent minded Potter. Greengrass didn't seem to be paying that much attention to the new deadweight either, but that was probably due to the fact that Potter was the force behind it and thus took all of the weight off her.

"Hey" Marcus bit out, "are you two going to let go any time soon?"

Both girls hit the breaks right before the Slytherin dorm entrance. The huge Black Mamba hissed as it slithered about impatiently, waiting for the password.

Marcus huffed, he puffed, and… he couldn't quite blow the duo off for his broken arm. 'Actually, if they can do that to one of Weasley twins, maybe even Wood or Johnson, we've got the game in the bag'

"You two… did alright" Aiji and Daphne gave him deadpanned stares, all the while flickering their eyes towards his broken arm. Aiji even had the audacity to snort and roll her eyes.

"If yer trying ta act like yer better than us then yer wasting yer time" Aiji sneered, "I already broke yer arm. Remember?"

"Perhaps next time you'd like us to send you to the hospital wing near death? Would that be more up to your standards?" Daphne smiled sweetly.

Marcus, to save face, marched up to the portrait, "Rise of the Dark!" and once the dorm door opened, he grabbed onto it as if to slam it shut.

"Oh, by the way, training's at 5 o'clock, right after classes, don't be late or else" on that cheery note, Marcus slammed the portrait door shut.

Daphne tisked snobbily, "As if any of his 'or else' could be worse than yours, Aij"

Aiji snorted, her well-deserved arrogance reaching new-heights, "Who knows, maybe I should come in late. I might actually break a sweat."

The Black Mamba just had to add her two cents, "_I wouldn't worry too much about that, Toushin-sama, Flint gets tired after only one hour of mating._"

Aiji mindlessly replied without even noticing who she was replying to or how, "_Only an hour? Pathetic, I know thirteen-year-olds that can last longer than that_"

The Black Mamba recoiled, "_You speak the serpent tongue? Without the need of a Makai-jin(1) dialect? Do you by any chance have Hebi youkai(2) or any other kind of snake demon blood in your veins? _"

That got Aiji's attention, "_Huh? Hebi youkai? Nah, I'm only a Toushin, and even that is only 'cause 'nii-chan gave me some of his blood. How come you never spoke up before? Hell, how did you know I'm a Toushin? Didn't catch your name, by the by._"

"_I did speak up before, in human English tongue. I never expected you to be able to understand me, Toushin-sama, hence my little crude comment on Flint's private habits. My given name is Tiamat, but please call me Chaos(3); Sal never did quit it with the snobby names with obscure meanings. His poor daughter. Salazar Slytherin, as you no doubt have guessed, was the one who placed me here, after my physical body had expired and I desired to live, even as a painting. Since no one but Salazar could understand me, I was essential as a spy both on the other Founders and on the students and staff. As for your demon genes: Child, I've existed for two thousand years, give or take a few. You think you're the only demon that's camouflaged herself as a human here?_"

"_Really? Who?_"

Tiamat snickered, "_All in good time child, but first you should attend to your nest-mate. Don't you worry, I never once told a thing to young Tom, I always figured that if I told him some of the things I know of the Founders, Sal in particular, he would've sunk into a deeper depression than he already was in._"

Aiji snorted, "_He's a self-hating 'half-blood.' How much more depressed can you get?_"

"_True, perhaps I should've told him anyway. Suicide is better than splitting your soul into pieces._"

"_Then you know about those Hor-thingies?!_" Aiji perked up, and then she gained a calculating glint in her beryl eyes "_Okay, what's the catch for information on those?_"

"_Suspicious at the drop of a hat, eh? I like that. The naïve, good girl act always did irritate me, especially when it's genuine. Your mother always did get on my nerves with that._"

"_Huh? Wasn't Lily-ka-san a Gryff, though? If she was such a pain in the ass, then why did you pay attention to her?_"

"_She was a lioness, but she hung around so much with Severus that I had no choice but to look in on her. If that git wasn't so interesting, I would've just dismissed Evans' presence altogether. No offence meant young one._"

"_None taken. I pretty much grew up thinking that my real ma didn't want me or something. Dunno what to feel about 'em, to be honest. They're kinda like strangers that I should know but I don't... Besides, you were there when she was alive and you spied on her, I'd say you know more about my ma than me._" Aiji shrugged, discomfited.

"_Interesting_" The snake slithered about, looking at Aiji in the eye with a serpentine smirk etched on her face. "_Very well child, though it would be amusing to see you struggle to find the information yourself, I will tell you all that I know, for a price. It is not complete though, as I do not know the Horcruxes' current location. What is your choice?"_

"_What kind of bargain are we talking about?_" A tick appeared above Aiji's eyebrow. Oooh did that overgrown reptile's condescending tone set her teeth on edge.

"_Nothing much, I would just borrow your body for a couple of months. It's been sooo long since I've gone gambling, drinking, or smoking. Don't worry I won't have sex while possessing your body, I'd much prefer to be in a more mature one, preferably with bigger breasts and longer legs._"

Aiji's face scrunched up, her fangs were starting to appear and her knuckles cracked by themselves, "_Who are you calling flat-chested, you (censored) (censored) (censored) (censored) (censored) little (censored) (censored) (censored) I'm gonna (censored) (censored) (censored) (censored)!_"

The snake amusedly snickered, "_Now, now, child, there's no need to get upset. Not everyone can be as mature or talented as my transformed human form. I'm sure the flat-chested butch look must at least attract the lesbians._"

Aiji clenched her hands over the edges of the painting, snarling "_Yeah? How about instead of that deal, you tell me what you know about the Horcruxes and I don't blow you up to kingdom come with my youki!_"

Tiamat stiffened, "_You wouldn't, you need the information I know, and therefore you won't blow me up before that._"

Aiji smirked triumphantly, "_Don't be too sure. There are other people who know a thing or two about those Hor-thingies, otherwise I wouldn't know about 'em in the first place. So you're not indispensable._"

Tiamat and Aiji had a stare-down, then the snake let out a grin (or what resembled one). "_You drive a hard bargain, child. I foresee nothing but fortune in your future._"

Aiji raised a sardonic eyebrow, "_What, you psychic or something_"

"_No, I never believed in a so called destiny. Thoughts like those are meant to strip us of our free will. I meant that you are a forceful, violent, and crafty bitch. No doubt you'll soon have followers and territories under your thumb in the Makai._" Tiamat stared past Aiji to where a stupefied Daphne was rooted in place. "_I'll tell you everything I know, Toushin-sama, however, first you need to tend to your nest-mate, she appears to be in shock._"

Aiji glared at the snake, "_How do I know you won't back out on our deal?_"

Tiamat let out an amused hiss, "_I rather like violent and crafty bitches, so I would tell you anyhow. Besides, ever since you've come here things have livened up a bit at this drudgery old castle, so why not?_"

"_Fine, but if you back out and don't talk, I reserve the right to set you on fire, roast you and feed you to the Onis_" Aiji bit out, "Rise of the Dark" and the portrait opened.

Luckily, there wasn't anyone in the common room, no doubt Marcus headed directly to his dorm room to rest up.

Shrugging, Aiji grabbed Daphne's hand and dragged her to their dorm.

As soon as they got in to the room, Aiji turned to her fellow power-junkie. And found that Daphne was still in shock, looking like someone took a bouquet of old flowers and slapped her silly with it.

"Oi, Daphne" Aiji snapped her fingers in front of the blonde, "Yo, snap out of it, will ya? I know that arguing with a painting's pretty damned pathetic, but this is ridiculous!"

"Aiji" Daphne croaked out, "how come you didn't tell us that you spoke parseltongue?"

"Par-wha? You mean what that snake called 'serpent tongue'? Didn't even notice I was speaking a different language." Aiji shrugged.

"Only you Aiji, only you" Daphne shook her head in exasperation, her earlier shock dispersed, "Basically parseltongue is–"

The dorm door opened in a hurry as Sally-Anne and Lythiel barged in and closed it. Then Sally-Anne began to shoot locking spells at it, occasionally taking suggestions and mimicking incantations from Lythiel.

When they finished, they turned to Daphne and Aiji, "Alright" commenced a haggard Lythiel, "these spells should hold for 30 minutes if Parkinson, her posse, and McDougal don't get someone to open the door."

"What the hell is up with those rumors about you two using Peeves as a bludger and taking Flint to the Hospital Wing?" finished an annoyed Sally-Anne.

Daphne and Aiji glanced at each other, then their gazes went to the private restrooms.

"Why don't we get in my washroom and discuss this, the privacy wards are a part of the castle, so we won' have to worry about unwanted eavesdroppers since mine doesn't have a painting." Daphne suggested.

Lythiel looked sick, "Oh no, we are not having a possibly important discussion in your loo Daff. You know I can't stand grubbiness of any kind, especially in a restroom!"

Sally-Anne gave Lythiel a deadpanned side-glance "You've got OCD, don't you?"

Daphne glared back at the other blonde, "Well, my loo wouldn't be a dirty mess if you hadn't told the House Elves to stop cleaning up after me!"

"You've got to learn to clean up after yourself." Lythiel asserted, "I refuse to clean up after you and one day we won't be in an area where House Elves can serve you, so you better learn now rather than gain bad habits later!"

"You sound like Keiko-nee-chan, ao-gan" Aiji said amusedly, yet with a bit of dread, "Does your bathroom have a painting?"

"No" she claimed triumphantly, "therefore, we shall have this discussion in _my_ restroom"

Sally-Anne rolled her eyes, "Living with an OCD friend, how troublesome."

Aiji slyly smirked, "I take it your john's also a mess?"

"Of course, I'm a lazy-ass who constantly uses the excuse of having an artistic organization pattern to avoid cleaning up, what'd you expect?" Sally-Anne said with a straight face.

Aiji laughed, "At least you take the time to make an excuse, I'm just a slob with zero domestic skills, period."

"Come on, let's go before the others barge in" Lythiel quipped, "Oh, by the way, since you three are certified slobs, I must ask that you do not touch anything lest you disturb my space. There's enough room to sit on the floor and the bathtub. You have been warned."

"Definitely OCD" Aiji and Sally-Anne deadpanned.

"See what I've had to live with all these years" Daphne grumbled good-naturedly, already too used to Lythiel's mild pathology to be bothered by it. Although the resent House Elf trick did irritate her something fierce.

"Aside from our flying incident, Aiji's got a nifty trick she didn't even know she had" Daphne said as she entered the pristine bathroom. It was so clean, smooth and organized that it sparkled.

'Yeesh, and I thought Kurama-nii was a neat-freak' Aiji thought as she entered Lythiel's loo.

Sally-Anne was the last one to enter and close the door behind her.

After accommodating themselves in a way that wouldn't destroy Lythiel's order, Daphne launched the tale of the day's happenings.

If Sally-Anne and Lythiel thought that they were desensitized to the abnormal events going on ever since Aiji's arrival into their lives, they were mistaken.

'And here I thought that things couldn't get any weirder' Sally-Anne sardonically thought.

'Ah well, at least this is entertaining and doesn't compromise my gold-tinted future.'

(1) Makai-jin: of the Makai. It can either be used to describe a resident of the Makai or something else of it. Toranin-jin: person of Toranin. Alaric-jin: person of Alaric. Gandara-jin: person of Gandara... You get the idea.

(2) Hebi youkai: Hebi (snake) Youkai (demon), as you've no doubt guessed it.

(3) Tiamat is the Mesopotamian Primordial Goddess of Chaos, hence Tiamat's nickname being Chaos.


	7. Homicidal newbies and unconscious trolls

Okay, this is the new instalment of _Aiji_. I hope that this doesn't feel like too much like a filler and backstory chapter, I did try to start the action going. Let's see what you guys think. Meanwhile, I hope that I've fleshed out my OCs (Lythiel, Daphne, and Sally-Anne) enough. Not to mention that I hope Aiji's "voice" is likeable enough. Here's to hoping they aren't going in the Mary-Sue direction. So, if you lot would give me some feedback on this area, I would be estremely happy.

Aiji: Of course I'm likable! I'm the damned protagonist, if they didn't then why are we gettin' so much positive feedback?!

Lythiel: Some stories become famous not because of the protagonist, but because of impressive side-characters.

Daphne: (preens) Well, I am quite the personality!

Sally-Anne: Yeah, your narcissism has a life of its own.

Aiji: What Sal said. I'm just as charismatic as big brother you know!

Yuusuke: Weeeeeellllll, you're doin pretty good imoutou

Aiji: See!

Yuusuke: But you've got a long way to go to reach my level! (smirks)

Aiji: Why you--

As you can see, the characters also want to know, if only to settle this troublesome internal dispute.

All kidding aside, I'll try to update as much as I can in the summer. I'm starting my last year at university in the Fall and that means... tun-tun-tun-tuh! Senior Project and/or Thesis! Since I'm a double concentration senior, I'll have to do one project/thesis on theater and another on writting. Chances are, I'll probably write a novella or something and maybe I'll do a performance. So, as you can see, come Fall, I will pretty much do other projects. I probably won't even be able to work on my fanfics on and off the school year like I usually do. Sorry guys, but real life and my original characters are going to take the front seat the second September comes.

And on that jolly note, on with the story!

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"So this is why you're late," calm, placid, impassive, serene, take your pick of adjectives, that's what Aiji's voice sounded like while gazing at the mid-coital forms of Slytherins Miles Bletchley and Norma Meeks.

Of course, Aiji was anything but calm as her cracking knuckles warned Bletchley of his punishment for ditching Quidditch practice for sex.

Bletchley and Meeks blanched, jumped away from each other and started searching for their clothes. "H-h-h-ow did you find me?" Bletchley stammered. It was no use lying as that would only make Aiji all the more vicious.

Aiji threw a frilly pastel yellow pair of panties at him, "This was stuck on the door, dumbass!"

Bletchley caught it, barely, and handed it to Meeks, "Uh, Norma, this is yours." She snatched it from his hand and stuffed it into her robe pocket. Gawking, terrified, at Fighting "King" Urameshi, Meeks didn't dare move to call attention to herself. No way was she making herself a target to Slytherin House's currently scariest 11-year old, not even if her fuck-buddy's life was on the line.

"Get the fuck out," Aiji ordered her. Meeks dashed out the door like a gazelle chased by a lioness.

She turned her furious eyes to Bletchley, "Next time, whichever girl you pounded to the wall is going to watch you get the shit beaten outta ya by a kid."

Bletchley gulped, he never would've thought that there'd be someone worse than Flint or Snape to be caught in these circumstances.

"Clench your teeth," was the only warning Aiji gave as she punched him.

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The Slytherin Quidditch team ceased their training at the sight of a very ticked off Aiji dragging a bloody, whimpering, banged up Miles Bletchley. Aiji dropped Bletchley in the middle of the grounds, flung a broom at his stomach, and barked "Get to a post before I nail your head to my wall."

Flint, Montague, Pucey, Higgs, Derrick, and Daphne didn't even bother to wonder what their Keeper did to merit such violence on his person. Obviously, the reason he skipped must not have been a good one for Aiji to go Muhammad Ali on his ass. Although, it couldn't have been _that_ bad since there were no broken bones. Feh, served the idiot right for ditching them. And getting caught.

As soon as Bletchley was on a post, albeit leaning on his broom to support himself, Aiji joined the others with a smirk that would've prevented sharks from eating her out of professional courtesy. "So, this wanker thinks he's good enough without practice that he can shag while we train our arses off." At her words, the team aimed their bloodlust at their helpless teammate.

On second thought, Aiji didn't need to break his bones immediately. "Is that so?" Flint was normally the one who opposed Aiji and her decisions, a last stand to keep his position as Captain and top dog among the team. Even though it usually ended with a bout, either in Quidditch or brawling, and Flint getting his ass kicked, it was still more of a resistance than everyone else in the team.

For Flint to agree with Aiji, that was a death sentence in and of itself. Bletchley gulped as Daphne and Derrick tightened their grips on their clubs. Montague, Higgs, Pucey and Flint were almost breaking their brooms from the pressure of their taut hands. Aiji had the manifestation of a ferocious tigress behind her as her eyes sparkled with malice.

"N-n-now, mates, there is no need for that!" Bletchley squeaked, "I won't even so much as _look_ at Norma… Oh, shit… MUMMY!!!!!!"

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Lythiel and Sally-Anne didn't look up from their books – _Alchemy: Art or Science?_ by Tranquility Leambre and _Les __Rois__Maudits__: Le __Roi__ de __Fer_by Maurice Druon, respectively – as Aiji and Daphne slammed the dorm door with more exuberance than necessary.

As it was a Saturday, the Quidditch team had taken advantage of the relatively sunny day (as sunny as it gets in Northern Scotland) and practiced from 10 to 4. Aiji had demanded the extra training hours after she deemed the team "weak" after the first meeting. To further prove her point, she had out-flown each, and every, player through sheer physical strength. Hence where their favourite tomboy got the nickname "Monster Strength Urameshi." Go figure.

By the end of the first week of Aiji and Daphne's acceptance at the Quidditch team, Aiji had become a de-facto Captain and trainer. Flint fought with her to keep his position and only tolerated her training methods because of their phenomenal results. The rest of the teammates respected, and maybe feared, her. Daphne cursed that she wasn't exempted from the "brutal, inhumane, and bloody bonkers" training just because she was a reserve.

One of the requirements for the Quidditch team was that they all charm their clothes to weight 10 kilos more than normal. "Sentimentally traditional training, I know," Aiji had commented once, "but it works." Of course Aiji, being the impatient nutjob that se was, wore 50 kilos extra and was planning on making the team add another 10 next term.

Of course, that was the least of the team's worries. For example, Higgs' speed had improved drastically after Aiji pulled the honey and bees trick on him while making him catch the Snitch… on a CleanSweep 4.

After watching _that_ particular session, the newly retired Bole had said, "Never been so glad to have broken my arm in my whole life."

Of course, that was nothing compared to the time when Aiji noticed that the Slytherin team had abysmal teamwork. Their greatest strengths seemed to be brute force and underhanded methods. That was all well and good, but against a team with solid collaboration whom also possessed those traits, the Slytherin team would lose. No matter how much everyone protested that none of the other teams would have those qualities, Aiji wouldn't budge on the issue.

If there was one thing that Aiji had learned as a Reikai Tantei, was that a solid team can make all the difference between victory and defeat. She knew that if it weren't for the impressive teamwork between Yuusuke, Kuwabara, and herself on Tarukane-teme's mansion, it would've taken them longer to get Yukina out of that hellhole.

Aiji was well-aware that she wasn't a natural team-player. She worked like magic with Yuusuke-nii, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei because she trusted them with her life. The session was also for her own benefit, to force herself to work well with others.

So what did she do? Well, she tied herself and the team, amid mutinous glares and death threats, and then coated them all with rabbit blood courtesy of Slinky the house-elf. Upon her signal, Transfiguration genius sixth year Slytherin Dermot Hoggins transformed three pebbles into hungry wolves. Naturally, this exercise – if you could call it that – forced the team to work together and make decisions on short notice.

Since their wands were nowhere near their persons, the entire team, minus Aiji, wanted to make a run for it. Aiji, on the other hand, had wanted to wrestle the wolves into submission. Throughout the… ahem… disagreement, Hoggins took perverse pleasure at watching five of his pureblood tormentors at his mercy. Though he did feel bad about the terror Daphne and Pucey had endured, still. It was all for the team's own good.

After the "Transfiguration Incident," as it came to be known, Snape had a little talk to Aiji about toning down her unorthodox but effective methods. It went something along the lines of: "If they die, I'll have to answer to angry parents and lawsuits. In which case, I will personally slit your throat open." Succinct and to the point. Personally, Aiji thought his irritation towards her stemmed from speeding up Flint's recovery after the hazing incident. It wasn't her fault that Pomfrey refused to completely heal his broken arm.

Of course, after that, the Slytherin team had all the motivation in the world to perfect their teamwork and any other areas that they lacked. No way were they giving Aiji any cause to bring out the big guns. Nuh uh, no way.

Thankfully, the strategizing was left to Marcus Flint as Aiji was more of a think on her feet kind of player. Much to his frustration, he noted that the team wouldn't need to use 6/8th of the underhanded tricks than usual. Aiji's training had more than toughened them up; it'd made them faster, stronger, and much more resilient.

Aiji knew that boredom was to blame for her training methods worthy of Genkai. There wasn't much to do in the castle except homework, study, fly, Quidditch, gossip, read, play pranks, play wizarding board games, and hang out. Hailing from a large city like Tokyo, Aiji was used to being able to move about whenever she wanted to wherever she wanted. If she felt like going to the arcade, she bloody well went to the arcade. If she felt like taking a walk in the park, then she'd smell the plum blossoms at Ueno a couple of stations away.

Hell, there wasn't even a wizarding version of Shibuya nearby! The closest thing was Hogsmeade, and that was a hybrid between a quiet little resident town and a modest tourist village.

Having that freedom taken away from her made her restless. Since she didn't apply that energy into schoolwork, Quidditch training and training her friends on reiki were the focus of said energy.

Sally-Anne most definitely understood and sympathized with Aiji's plight. As Lyon is the second largest urban area in France, Sally-Anne had also grown up used to living in a big city and the freedoms it provided. She certainly preferred her mom's home in Rue des Pierres Plantées than her dad's small mansion situated near Bedfield, no matter how much money the latter was worth.

Although, just because they all knew the cause, didn't mean that they had the cure. Lythiel had a hard enough time trying to get Aiji to study, but she was determined to make the Eurasian at least pass her classes.

As Lythiel's zeal allowed her to finish all of her work ludicrously early, it gave her more time to study extra materials and to badger her friends into finishing their own work.

"You do realize that Potions essay on fifty uses of cyclamens is not going to write itself," Lythiel stated while turning a page. That was an obvious jab towards Sally-Anne and Aiji.

Sighing in a resigned manner, Sally-Anne bookmarked her page, placed it on her portable desk, and then took out some parchment. Some of it was blank; some was filled with her curvy handwriting. She passed the latter to Daphne, who did the same. Then they both sat down on their own portable desks and chairs and started writing.

Both girls had a system going on: Sally-Anne would do the Charms, Transfiguration, History of Magic, and Defense Against the Dark Arts essays while Daphne did the Potions, Herbology, and Astronomy ones. They'd then switch essays and re-interpret the other's work, in a lesser standard of course (to avoid getting caught).

Aiji had nothing to trade the girls with, as they were indeed keeping up their side of the bargain by teaching her some harder spells in order to later experiment them with reiki. Besides, Lythiel was, for all intents and purposes, Aiji's own tutor. A tutor that believed that having the answers handed on a silver platter was ineffective to learning something.

Aiji didn't have anything to complain about, as Lythiel helped her translate her essays, Aiji used the oral translation charm less and less, and her written English ameliorated over-time. Besides, the girls had long-ago figured out how to hold and keep Aiji's attention: make it as similar to a fight as humanly possible, and you've got one hooked Urameshi.

Daphne was easily the most bloodthirsty out of the quartet, second only to Aiji, of course it was easy for the eldest girl to teach Aiji a thing or two about vicious plants and insidious potions. Lythiel mostly stuck to facts, but her enthusiasm and vigor energized Aiji enough that she remembered ¾ of Lythiel's explanations (which was saying a lot). Sally-Anne, surprisingly, was the one who had the easiest time relating anything to Aiji, including the one subject that was classified as boring for Hogwarts students: History of Magic. Sally-Anne was a good story teller, she took advantage of the material she was given and made the best of it. And with subjects such as the Goblin Rebellions, Werewolf Riots and Exoduses, and Mermish Mass Murders (just to name a few topics); Sally-Anne didn't even need to embellish or exaggerate to keep Aiji interested.

Aiji could never figure out how Binns could make such fun history sound about as exciting as watching grass grow.

"Let's just get this over with," Aiji grumbled.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To say that Yuusuke was angry would be the equivalent of saying that Albus Dumbledore was a relatively smart man.

"What do you mean the real locket is in an unplottable mansion?! Hell, what the fuck does unplottable mean!!" he snarled while holding Koenma from his collar.

"Basically it means that it's impossible to enter the mansion as the magic wards will keep anyone, but the people keyed to it, out." Michiko drawled as if Koenma wasn't being manhandled. "Although, we could get in by blowing the place to kingdom come, but then there's the problem of finding the damn thing through the rest of the surviving junk."

"You forgot to add the human police, inadvertently or not, running interference," Kurama reminded everyone.

"Then start explaining how we're gonna get in there, toddler!" Yuusuke demanded his captive. "Unless if you want us to blow the place up and disguise ourselves as coppers, there's no way we can get the fucking locket!!!"

"If you'd stop shaking me, I'd be happy to tell you!" Koenma managed to bellow through the shaking. Yuusuke complied and glared at him impatiently.

"There is a way in there," Koenma said. "Currently, Number 12 Grimmauld Place is empty save for Kreacher the insane house-elf." Koenma cut off Yuusuke before his way too trigger happy detective could get any ideas, "There are officially four people that can open the mansion for us, although one of them has precedence over the others and isn't likely to let two of those people in."

"Stop stalling Koenma, get to the point already," Yuusuke said.

"The person who can help us is Sirius Black," Koenma then shut his eyes and waited for the onslaught.

He wasn't disappointed.

"WHAT!?" Yuusuke punched a hole through Koenma's desk. "There is no way in the Three (censored) Worlds that I'm going anywhere near that (censored) (censored) (censored), unless if it's to kill him!!!"

"Yuusuke, it's not what you think!!" Koenma tried to placate his apocalyptic detective.

"What the hell don't I understand!? This is the same guy who went and betrayed Aiji's parents to that fucked up snake. He's probably planning my baby sister's death even as we speak, that—"

"Sirius Black is innocent!!!" Koenma shouted over Yuusuke's tirade. Surprisingly, the words got through the rampaging boy's brain.

"Come again?" Yuusuke's thunderous expression didn't leave his face. If anything, the only thing that was keeping him from wringing Koenma's neck was Kurama's firm hand on his shoulder.

"Perhaps you should explain the situation in very accurate details, Koenma." When Kurama suggests something with that cold smile on his face, it's usually a good idea to go through with his idea.

Koenma cringed. It was bad enough that he had one over-protective big brother to deal with, now he had to deal with the fox! 'I need a vacation.'

"Before you guys can ask, Reikai has strict rules about not interfering with humans unless if it involves different worlds coinciding with each other. As Sirius Black's admittedly tragic fate was all a part of human wizarding business, we left it as such. If it weren't for Aiji being a detective and a half-demon, and if Voldemort hadn't used Horcruxes, this messy business would still be considered human affairs—"

"Oi, beanie-sucker. Cut the excuses, we're not daddy-dearest. Just tell the damned story like it is," Michiko, who had been silent until now, said.

"Alright," Koenma sighed. "Sirius Black knew that he would be the obvious choice so he convinced James Potter to switch him with Peter Pettigrew. That way, Pettigrew would be the real Secret Keeper while Black would be the decoy. A simple, yet very effective ruse. It would've been successful except that Pettigrew wasn't loyal at all to the Potters."

"So the fucker told Riddle where to find the Potters and had a fall guy ready," Yuusuke said. He shuddered in anger as he thought of a life where Aiji hadn't survived the killing curse. 'She may be annoying, cocky, and a shit load of other things, but she's still my baby sister.'

"Right," Koenma said, "He was waiting for Black to chase after him to avenge his best friend's death and Aiji's sudden status as an orphan. Black did so and before he could get to him Pettigrew shouted, loud and clear, to the streets that Black had betrayed the Potters. Using the momentary distraction, Pettigrew blew up 12 normal humans with the wand he had hidden behind his back. He then cut off one of his fingers, turned himself into his rat form, and escaped to the sewers."

"I see, that explains it," Kurama said to himself.

"What do you mean, Kurama?" Yuusuke, already tense and barely keeping a firm hold of his outraged temper, all but barked at his companion.

Luckily, Kurama paid Yuusuke's outburst little heed. "I had found it odd that there was actually some kind of body-part from Pettigrew in the crime scene. After all, there was nothing left of the other humans, and they weren't the direct targets of Black's spell." Kurama sighed, "I didn't say anything before as I'm afraid my protective feelings over Aiji clouded my judgment."

"I'm surprised, though, that the supposed talentless bloke of the Marauders managed to become an Animagus." Michiko had already been filled in on the mission details and she had been lovers with many wizards. Of course, she was the one with the most knowledge over wizards, at least European ones.

"If it weren't for the other three I doubt he would've gone through with it in the first place," Koenma said. "The fourth Marauder, Remus Lupin, is a werewolf. Since werewolves can't contaminate animals; Black and Potter had decided to become Animagi to keep Lupin company on full moons. Pettigrew just went along for the ride."

"Where is that Lupin guy anyway?" Yuusuke asked, "I mean, I can get why Black couldn't take care of Aiji, what with being convicted for a crime he didn't commit. But why didn't Lupin take Aiji in. Anyone would've been better than the assholes she got stuck with. Hell, the shithead left her in an abandoned alley. If I hadn't been there, Ai-chan would've died within the day or worse!"

"He's a werewolf. European wizards are prejudiced against them even legally," Michiko said. "They'd choose a human mass-murderer over even the most parental werewolf to take care of a kid. It's sad to see that some things don't change."

"He did go looking for Aiji the minute he heard she was missing," Koenma said. "He nearly went to prison for breaking both of Dursley's arms and legs. A certain Headmaster pulled some strings and kept Lupin out of prison. My guess is, he felt that Dursley deserved it."

"And Lupin had to do everything the old fashioned way since the Japanese magical government wouldn't let Dumbledore do a search to stay out of the European blood war," Michiko concluded, the pieces of the puzzle finally clicking. "Finding Aiji in a huge city like Tokyo would be like looking for a needle in a haystack."

"With all the scents mixing together, he wouldn't even have known where to start," Kurama agreed.

"He wouldn't have found anything, since we moved a couple of months after Aiji joined the family. Mom had found a cheaper apartment somewhere close to Mushiori City. We stayed there for a year, I think," Yuusuke said.

Yuusuke then stood up and looked at Koenma expectantly. "So, where are the disguises?"

"You're going to need more than that to infiltrate Azkaban, Yuusuke," Koenma said wryly. "Get Michiko to debrief you on Dementors, you might have to kill one or two to bust Black out of there."

"Is Black even sane?" Kurama asked. "From what I understand, convicts lose their sanity after a year of residing in that prison. Black's been stuck in there for ten."

"We've already checked, he's still sane. Well, as sane as anyone stuck in Azkaban can be. More pressing worries are that he's severely malnourished and weak. He won't be able to summon up the power to open the mansion for a while."

Yuusuke, with his typical bullheaded confidence, didn't see much of a problem with that. "Obaa-chan has more than enough room for him and Yukina-chan can heal him. The rest is making sure he eats and rests enough, right? Besides, after being stuck in the slammer, I'm sure Black'll appreciate the wide outdoors. Plus, no one's going to come looking for him there…"

Koenma and Kurama were looking at him with bafflement and amusement respectively. "What!?" Yuusuke demanded.

"Nothing, just didn't think you had enough brain cells to rub together to produce logic outside of battle," Koenma said with a wan smile.

"So you aren't just a lucky fool, maybe there is something resembling strategy inside that mind of yours." Kurama teased.

"Shuddup," Yuusuke scowled. "Just because I'm not Mr. Perfect like some people doesn't mean I'm a complete knuckle head."

"I never said that," Kurama announced with his innocent smile (completely fake).

"Dirty rat," Yuusuke playfully punched Kurama's arm. "Speaking of rats, any idea where I can find Pettigrew? I wouldn't mind having a … word with him"

Koenma began coughing nervously, "Ah, well you see… since Pettigrew turned into a rat, he's been registered as one since then. And, well, do you have any idea how many rats there are in the UK? Much less the world?!"

"In other words, you have no idea where the (censored) is at." Yuusuke deadpanned.

"Perhaps you should rectify that Koenma. We wouldn't want Aiji-kun being spied on by an innocent looking rat, would we?" Kurama, once again, politely suggested.

Alright, folks, who is suicidal enough to go against Kurama's wishes?

Not Koenma, that's for sure. "It'll give the newly recruited ferry girls something to do."

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pansy Parkinson dreamed. Dreamed of a not-so-distant future where she would be Lady Malfoy and her Drakie-poo would show her the love she was entitled to have.

He would be as handsome as his father, with a few of his mother's features to distinguish him from the older man. Stormy grey eyes would only sparkle for her, twinkle only for her, darken only for her... see only for her.

He would cherish her, love her, and bathe her with nothing but the most tender of emotions. His aristocratic mouth would ravish hers, his tongue dance with her own pink appendage, smoke would fill her nostrils… Wait, what!?!

Pansy bolted awake, coughing at the black smoke that filled the dorm. Out of the corner of her eye, she noted that Millicent, Stacie and Morag were having the same problem.

A wolf's howl haunted the smoky dorm. The girls froze.

Another howl permeated the enclosed space. Shadowy figures appeared. Many more howls resounded as wolf-like shapes became more visible by the second.

"I-i-i-it's the Kwn Awn!!!" wailed Daphne, tears falling down her reddened cheeks. "They've taken Ly, Ai, and Sal!"

"T-t-t-t-t-t-the Kwn Awn!!" Pansy yelped. She rushed towards Millicent and hid behind the much larger girl. Despite the fear, Millicent stood and shielded Pansy from the canine messengers of Awn.

"EEEEEEKKKK" Stacie shrieked as she backed to the furthest corner in the dorm. Morag fell down and hid herself under the bed.

Soon the shadows took the shape of a tall humanoid figure. The wolves flanked the figure like an army to its general.

"A-a-a-a-awn?!" Millicent whimpered. The Celtic God of Death approached Pansy and Millicent. Pansy was clutching at the back of Millicent's nightgown, for once paler than Draco. "P-please, milord Awn!" Millicent pleaded, her knees shaking, barely holding her up. "Please, we beseech you, spare us!! We're too young to die!!!!!"

Millicent shut her eyes as she slid to her knees, bringing Pansy down with her. Both girls bowed their heads and whimpered like wounded animals.

Daphne just couldn't take it anymore. She laughed.

"BWA-HA-Ha-hahaha," Daphne clutched her stomach, panting to get some air.

To Pansy, Millicent, and Stacie's shock; they all heard an exasperated voice sigh and say "_Finite Incantatem_."

The smoke cleared until there were only… cardboard cut-outs of wolves and Aiji holding Sally-Anne and Lythiel on her shoulders totem-style. Lythiel, who was sitting on Sally-Anne's shoulders, had a huge cape on her own that draped down on all three girls.

"You just couldn't hold the laughter in," Sally-Anne, who had casted the advanced smoke spells and the _Finite_, said with a wan smile.

Lythiel shrugged, smiling as she allowed herself to fall from Sally-Anne's shoulders to the fluffy and bouncy bed bellow. Aiji grabbed Sally-Anne by the hips and lifted her off, setting her down on the ground in front of Aiji.

"Y-you, you, you, you," steam was coming out of Pansy's ears like a kettle. She was so angry, she didn't have words to describe the despicable girls in front of her.

"Ah, ah, ah, Parkinson," Sally-Anne smirked, "If I recall correctly, you once said everything goes on the morn of Samhain." She made a show of thinking by placing her hand under her chin, "In fact, didn't you say that right after you had locked Daff, Ly, and I in that rather small closet for hours last year?"

Daphne was still rolling on the floor. Lythiel was also giggling on the bed. Aiji looked as if she was going to join Daphne on the floor and Sally-Anne held a camera with a triumphant smirk.

Millicent stood and made to tackle Sally-Anne for the camera that supposedly held incriminating photographs of Pansy's fear, but a pillow punch (courtesy of Aiji) stopped her short. Aiji smirked, "Happy Halloween!"

Too bad Millicent and Pansy will never know that the wizarding camera was never used.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"What religions are there in wizarding England, anyway?" Aiji had asked after the prank was done.

"Most muggleborns or half-bloods follow the three monotheist religions. There are also some that follow Buddhism," Lythiel had answered. "But the majority of the purebloods all follow the Old Ways or paganism as you would call it. I believe the so-called Slytherin Princess just demonstrated the very healthy respect Anglo purebloods tend to show towards our Death God and his messengers."

"So that means I'm not the only polytheist around here," Aiji said.

"I take it you follow Shinto?"

"Yes and no. I mean, I believe that the Shinto gods exist, but I'm also convinced they're out to get me and are not as benevolent as they are portrayed," Aiji said with a wry smirk. Then she smacked her own forehead with a groan, "And I can't believe the words "benevolent" and "portrayed" just came outta my mouth." She glared at her three friends, "This is all your fault." Hiei was laughing at her, Aiji just knew it.

"Your eloquent future self will thank us someday," Sally-Anne said. Turning to Lythiel and Daphne, she asked about what the rest of the Slytherins were expected to do on Samhain. Aside from the pranking that one usually did on mischief night, even though that was more of a muggle custom, really.

"It depends on what religion you follow and to what extent you believe in it," Daphne finally added her two cents in. "For example, Lythiel over here is an agnostic Celtic pagan, so she doesn't really celebrate much of the holidays."

"Oh, so since I'm an atheist I don't have to join in," Sally-Anne confirmed.

Daphne was the only one of the Silver Quartet, as they came to be known, who was going to celebrate Samhain. She was a Celtic pagan who was less agnostic than Lythiel.

"So what are you going to do on Samhain?" Aiji, the only on who had zero knowledge of the wizarding pureblood traditions, asked.

"The basics of it are that Daphne will dance in a circle with a fire in the middle. After that she's going to pray and think of dead loved ones or ancestors. She'll then dream about them and supposedly converse with them in the dream world," it was surprisingly Sally-Anne who answered.

"There are some extra variants I'll add since I am a part of the Morrigan branch, but that is the jist of it," Daphne said. "How did you know?"

"My dad follows the Old Celtic Ways. Learned a thing or two watching him," Sally-Anne said.

"That's pretty neat though, talking to loved ones in dreams," Aiji smiled. "If I believed in that, I'd definitely join in." 'Wouldn't mind talking to otou-san again, maybe even add James-tou-san and Lily-ka-san.' Then she remembered the gods she did know existed and thought better of it. 'Nah, Enma and the toddler are enough to deal with as is. No way am I pissing off another set of gods.'

So there the girls were: sitting at the Great Hall with all the Hogwarts students, stuffing their faces with the fabulous dinner the house-elves had cooked up.

The plan was that Daphne would go with the rest of the practitioners of the Old Celtic Ways at 11 pm to a special room in the dungeons near the dorms. Aiji, Lythiel, and Sally-Anne would keep her company until she had to go. Afterwards, the rest of the girls would get their beauty sleep.

"Hey, we have a match tomorrow! Are you lot going to be awake enough that early?" Aiji had asked her team. Daphne, Derrick, Flint, Bletchley, and Higgs were all celebrating Samhain.

"There is a thing called naps. We use them when we have Astronomy classes. I'm sure we can also apply them on Samhain, Beltane, or any other holidays such as these," the sarcasm rolling off Flint's tongue didn't bother Aiji. If anything, she thought him a more tolerable person when he used his brain to make up a witty retort.

"And here I was worried that Montague, Pucey, and I would've had to rescue you lot from fainting mid-air. Pity I can't be your beloved knight in shining armor," Aiji snarked back. She had made it her personal goal to egg Flint into attacking her. The results always made her feel better.

A hand on her shoulder interrupted the pleasant flashback. "Aiji, if you don't cease smirking like that, Flint is going to start wearing a Kevlar vest and accuse you of plotting his untimely death," Sally-Anne wryly commented.

"Why would I wanna kill him when he's so much more interesting alive? He's like a favorite chew toy," Aiji smirked sinisterly. A couple of rows on the left, Marcus Flint shuddered, looked around, and couldn't quite convince himself that someone was not out to get him. "One that squeaks."

"Granted, he's not the most pleasant bloke, but I doubt anyone deserves the constant torment," Daphne said. "Unless if your name is Smith or McLaggen."

"Jeez, if you've got that big of a beef against them, why don't you just kick their asses and get it over with?"

"Of course not. That would be bullying and therefore degrading myself to their level," Daphne imperiously announced, "Most importantly, I haven't found a way to deal with the little sods in a way that the Professors can't deduct House Points, give me a detention, or expel me."

"Are you feeling alright, Lythiel? You've barely touched your food," Sally-Anne said, slight concern coloring her voice.

Aiji and Daphne immediately snapped their attention to Lythiel. It was true, Lythiel hadn't really eaten much nor had she contributed to the present conversation. Two big oddities. Ever since Aiji started training the girls, they all forgot about asinine diets and ate everything that tasted good and filled their stomachs up. They'd loose any extra pounds in training, so it wasn't an issue. As for the second anomaly, Lythiel could never pass up the chance to scold the Aiji and Daphne when they weren't discreet about their maniacal tendencies.

"What's wrong with your stomach?" Daphne immediately spotted Lythiel's hand rubbing circles on her abdomen. "Do you need to see Pomfrey?"

"No, I'm fine. My stomach's just been bothering me for a bit."

"Been bothering? Since when," when Daphne uses a mothering and commanding tone, one does not argue with her. Or lie to her.

"Since two hours ago," Lythiel, defeated, knew that she couldn't lie to Daphne now that the other blonde knew that she was discomfited. "It wasn't that bad before, but now the pain has started spiking up a bit."

Aiji focused her enhanced sense of smell on Lythiel alone. Now that the rest of the distracting smells weren't masking her friend's scent, Aiji noticed that there was an extra metallic smell on the girl. It was familiar, and it intermingled with Lythiel's natural scent that it was almost unnoticeable. 'Huh, if I didn't know any better, I'd say that I'm smelling… blood… Oh shit!'

Aiji abruptly stood up and grabbed Lythiel. Walking briskly, ignoring Lythiel's protests, and hearing Sally-Anne and Daphne following, Aiji ran to the closest bathroom.

"Aiji! What in Awn—"

"You're bleeding."

"WHAT!?"

"I have enhanced senses. I smelt blood on you. Therefore, you are bleeding."

"Shit, we have to get her to Pomfrey!" Daphne exclaimed.

"Right, and what are we supposed to say? "Oh, Madame Pomfrey, Ai smelt blood on Ly, do you think you can look into that?" Not bloody likely," Sally-Anne lost her casual eloquence in her panic.

Further discussion was interrupted as the girls entered the bathroom. Aiji instantly found an empty stall and entered it with the rest of the girls. It was a bit of a tight fit, but since they were all small eleven year olds, it was manageable.

"Strip," Daphne commanded.

"What?" Lythiel squawked.

"You're bleeding somewhere we can't see, you have to get rid of the clothes so we can ascertain where the bleeding's coming from and fix it," Daphne elaborated.

"But I'm fine! Sure, my stomach's had better days, but I don't—"

"Quit being so stubborn and strip," Sally-Anne said. "Now let's get this troublesome act done with so we can take care of you. Trust me, seeing you die of blood-loss is not my life ambition."

Aiji let out a bark of laughter, "Oh, so that's what was wrong! Shit, man, I'm sorry. I couldn't tell where the blood was coming from with all those scents at the Great Hall. Guess I panicked and assumed the worst."

"What?" Lythiel said, "Aiji, my love, if you wouldn't mind elaborating? I've just spent two hours in great pain, and then ten minutes believing I was about to die, so SPILL!"

"The bleeding's natural," was Aiji's flippant reply.

"How can bleeding of any kind be natural?" Sally-Anne grumbled.

"The kind that comes once a month for every female," Aiji deadpanned.

Sally-Anne's eyes widened as she caught on to the implication. Daphne and Lythiel, however, were still in the dark.

"At the risk of sounding like a dumb blonde, and therefore enforcing the stereotype," Lythiel said with a wan smile, "can you please spell it out?"

Aiji took Lythiel's hands into hers and said with mock elation, "Congratulations! You're a woman!"

Sally-Anne took pity on the girls and decided to translate, "What butch over here means is that you're having your first period."

"Oh," Lythiel mumbled, shell-shocked, "OH!"

Daphne chuckled with a self-deprecating smile on her lips, "Well, this is embarrassing! I have two moms and I don't even notice that one of my best friends is suffering from menstruation cramps."

"I've lived with a mom whose PMS could scare even demons away," Aiji said. "If anyone should be embarrassed for not figuring it out sooner, it should be me."

"Wait, let me just make sure…" Lythiel muttered as she unbuttoned her robe and pulled her skirt up. She didn't have to sit down on the toilet to see the red stain on her knickers. Lythiel blushed, humiliated.

"You're lucky it didn't stain your skirt," Sally-Anne commented. "I don't suppose that the Hogwarts bathrooms have vending machines for feminine hygiene."

"You mean that muggles sell extra thick knickers in public restrooms?(1)" Daphne asked. "That's… not a bad idea, actually."

"No, they sell pads and tampons," Sally-Anne said. "Before you can ask: pads are disposable, well, bits of plastic cloth you put in your knickers. They, err, um, absorb the blood so it doesn't stain anything. When the pad is full of blood, you take it out and, well, replace it with another," Sally-Anne practically shouted the last part. She was as red as a lobster and couldn't look at her friends' eyes.

"Jeez, Sal, it's just pads and tampons! There's nothing embarrassing about 'em. I mean, it's not like you're talking about having sex with your lover," Aiji said. She then turned to Lythiel, "Tampons are sorta like pads, only you put them in you and the blood never leaks out of your vagina."

Lythiel opened her mouth but no sound came out of her. She was too mortified to say anything. Daphne and Sally-Anne were also in a similar predicament. Aiji rolled her eyes.

"Okay, let's make this simple. Just nod or shake your head to my questions, 'kay Ly?" Lythiel nodded. "Okay, I have some pads and tampons in my trunk," at her friends' questioning looks, she added, "'ka-san put them in just in case I ended up being an early bloomer. Anyway, do you want me to go to the dorm and get some for you?" Blushing, Lythiel nodded. "Do you want to try using a tampon?" Lythiel shook her head vigorously with a disgusted look on her face, "Yeah, didn't think so. So I'll just bring the pads?" Lythiel nodded, relieved.

Aiji then started grabbing a generous amount of toilet paper. "Ai, what are you doing?" Sally-Anne asked.

"Put this toilet paper in your panties, Ly. Just because you haven't stained your skirt and robe yet doesn't mean you won't," Aiji said as she examined the amount of paper that she took. "This should hold you 'till I get back."

Lythiel took the paper, still blushing, and mumbled with a bowed head, "Not that I'm not, err, grateful for the help but, um, d'you think you could…" she gestured to herself and the door.

"Oh, right, sure!" Sally-Anne said, happy to get out of the awkward situation, "Come on, Ai, Daff, let's leave Ly to her privacy!" She grabbed Aiji and Daphne by the arms as she rushed out of the stall.

Daphne was considerate enough to close the door behind her. "You know, considering how many times my moms complain about periods, you'd think I wouldn't be embarrassed by now," Daphne slapped her hand on the stall next to Lythiel's.

A squeak came from the same stall and stopped Aiji from leaving the bathroom. "Who's in there," Daphne snarled. "Are you spying on us!?"

"Like they're going to answer when you're pissed off," Sally-Anne said.

Aiji didn't bother with pleasantries, she just went up to the stall and said, "If you don't come out and tell us why you were spying on us, I'll drag you out myself."

"You wouldn't!" the girl on the other stall said.

"Wanna try me?" Aiji dared her, "Now be a good girl and tell us why you stuck around when Ly was having an embarrassing moment. Just so you know, this ain't much blackmail material!"

"It isn't?" Sally-Anne whispered to Daphne.

"I'm not trying to gain blackmail material! I was just sitting here, minding my own business and you lot barged in and started having that extremely awkward talk next door!"

"Granger, just get out of the stall already," Sally-Anne drawled. "This is awkward enough as is without talking to you over the door."

"How did you know—"

"I didn't, you just told me," Sally-Anne smirked. "I overheard Patil telling Weasley that you haven't left the bathroom since classes ended. Also, your voice sounded like it was close to our age. I added it all up and came up with an educated guess."

"You know, it's moments like these that you scarily remind me of Kurama-nii," Aiji said.

"So, what do you say Granger?" Daphne simpered, "Either you can face us or we break the door open, your choice."

"Fine!" Granger opened the door. It didn't take long for the girls to figure out why she had been reluctant to leave the stall. Her cheeks were red, not only because of the embarrassing discussion she overheard, but because of crying. Her eyes were puffy and red, with tear marks trailing down her cheeks.

Aiji and Daphne instantly felt guilt claw at them. Aiji always felt uncomfortable watching anyone cry. She always let Keiko or other more empathic people deal with the wailing party while she ran for the hills.

Daphne, on the other hand, felt the need to comfort sobbing parties, unless if she felt they deserved it. Her arms twitched in reflex but Daphne restrained herself. She doubted that Granger would welcome any attempt to soothe her after Daphne had all but bullied her.

Sally-Anne, however, felt no such guilt. 'Oh merde!! She heard me explain about pads like it was nothing! Okay, okay, this is fixable. I mean, she doesn't know about my family so it's not like she'll comment on it as strange. But, what if she does talk about it to someone!? Okay, breathe, what is one thing that Granger is known for besides her know-it-all attitude and her love of books?' Sally-Anne franticly grasped at straws. 'Her kiss-arse attitude? No, that won't work. She's only like that with the professors. Besides, I'm a kiss-arse too, so she could use it against me.'

"Who made you cry?" Daphne asked with surprising sympathy.

"That's none of your business!" Granger shouted, "And who says I was crying? I wasn't!"

'That's it! Her pride!' Sally-Anne could've kissed Daphne for inadvertently giving her the answer. "So you weren't sobbing in the bathroom since classes finished. You were just… admiring the differences between muggle and wizarding loos, or some other excuse," Sally-Anne smiled as she bargained. "And we weren't having a very embarrassing discussion about Ly getting her first period; Ai, Daff and I weren't talking about feminine hygiene; and we were just conferring about a prank or something."

"Remind me to make you into my lawyer," Aiji said, glad to avoid a mushy crying scene.

"I think that Sal just summarized what is going to happen," Lythiel stated as she stepped out of her stall. "We are all going to leave and head for our own dorms. In which case, Aiji is going to give me a pad and I will change myself in the privacy of my loo. Epona knows who else will come here."

"Great, so we're all in agreement?" Aiji grinned, "Let's… oi, d'you guys smell that?"

"Not all of us have an enhanced sense of smell, Ai," Daphne said.

"Dude, I can't believe you're not smelling this. It stinks like a cocktail of rotten eggs, old socks, tar, expired fish, and rotten cabbages!" Aiji plugged her nose with her fingers. 'I'm not going crazy, right Hiei-nii? My nose ain't malfunctioning!'

'It's not, the troll isn't close enough yet for the girls to notice the smell,' Hiei responded immediately. He was calm, he knew that Aiji could beat the troll easy, but a little caution wasn't going to hurt anyone, aside from the troll that is.

'Troll!?'

'Yes, a certain professor let it in. He wanted whatever's at the third floor corridor.'

'Shit, guess that means I gotta investigate it later, huh?'

'First you have to get rid of the troll. My advice? Cover your nose, your sense of smell will hinder you more than help you.'

'Gotcha. And thanks, Hiei-nii.'

"Ugh, actually, forget what I said," Daphne cried as she too covered her nose. "This reeks!"

"I think I'm going to be sick," Lythiel choked out. Granger and Sally-Anne nodded in agreement.

The sound of thundering steps instantly sent alarm bells on the human girls' minds. "Get behind me, guys," Aiji ordered as she cancelled her strength repressors by a bit . She then had the same power-level as Yuusuke when he fought in Tarukane-teme's mansion.

Granger opened her mouth to object but Daphne had clutched her arm and dragged her to the back of the loo. Lythiel and Sally-Anne were already there, wands out.

With a bang, the troll had torn the bathroom entrance door off its hinges. With its height reaching an impressive 10'2'', the troll made a frightening and intimidating figure. The club it used to smash a wall only added to its menacing appearance.

Granger screamed and pressed herself to the wall. Sally-Anne's eyes darted to and fro, looking for a way out. She may have trust in Aiji's strength, but even she couldn't possibly take on a Mountain Troll head on, right?

"Don't make any sudden movements," Lythiel whispered as Daphne stepped on Granger's foot to quiet her.

Granger's scream had given the troll a target. Or rather four targets pressed to the wall.

"Don't even think about it, asshole," Aiji snarled. "How 'bout I make a deal with you: you leave and I let you live."

"Ai, now's not the time to act cool and tough," Sally-Anne whimpered.

The troll growled stupidly. It aimed its club in Aiji's direction and struck. "Aiji!" "Move it, moron!" "_Reducto_! Shit I missed!!" "Oh God!"

The club smashed into splinters the minute Aiji's fist went through it. Daphne's _Reducto_ had missed the club, but had struck the troll on the shoulder. The troll roared at the discomfort and the loss of its weapon. "Yeah, what're you gonna do about it?" Aiji taunted the troll, cracking her knuckles.

"Aiji," Lythiel, amazed that her friend was still alive, called out. "We should make a run for it while we can!"

"You guys do that, I'll handle ugly here," Aiji said. She didn't have to look back to know that her friends were looking at her with horrified amazement, "Don't worry, if I can destroy his club, I can bash his head open."

"Watch out!!" Sally-Anne's warning came at the right time, as the troll tried to punch Aiji. Aiji jumped to the ceiling and used it to propel herself to the troll's face. "Take this!!" her fist broke its nose. The force of the punch knocked the troll out in one go. It fell to the floor and caused a miniature earthquake from the force of the fall.

Aiji landed softly near the troll. She strolled casually towards it and nudged it with her foot. It didn't even groan from the pain. 'Did I kill it?' Aiji wondered with dread.

Great, how was she supposed to explain how she had killed a Mountain Troll, of all things, with only one punch?

'Don't worry, it's just unconscious,' Hiei supplied. 'You might want to get out of there. Snape, McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, and Quirell are close. Don't worry about the third floor, Quirell's empty handed.'

'Thanks three-eyes,' Aiji mentally sighed in relief.

"Whoa," Granger breathed, "How did you do that?"

"Amazing what happens when you're a master martial artist," Aiji said dryly.

"Somehow, I don't think that the professors will accept it at that," Sally-Anne said. Then she remembered all of the unfortunate events that happened to any one of Aiji's enemies. "Never mind."

"You're saying that as though we will get caught," Aiji said, rummaging through her pant pocket. Taking out a miniature version of her mace, Aiji pointed her holly wand at it and muttered, "_Engorgio_."

The mace returned to its normal size, startling Granger who had never seen it up-close.

"Just out of curiosity," Lythiel started with a nervous tick on her eyebrow, "Why didn't you use that against the Troll in the first place?!"

"Wasn't necessary," Aiji shrugged as she got into an odd sort of batting position in front of a bare wall, like a baseball batter. "All I needed was to knock it out. In this case I need a hole big enough for all of us to fit."

"Wasn't necessary? WASN'T NECESSARY?!" Granger shrieked. "You nearly gave us a hart attack by fighting that troll barehanded and you say that a weapon was unnecessary!?"

Aiji felt Lythiel, Daphne, and Sally-Anne glaring at her, likewise promising retribution for scaring them.

"You lot can give me the sermon later, preferably when we aren't about to be discovered by the profs with an unconscious troll." Without waiting for a response, Aiji swung her hips, lashing her upper-body to the wall. The mace smashed and broke the wall, creating a decent sized crater.

Taking out her wand and pointing it at the mace, Aiji mumbled "_Reduccio_" and changed it back to its puny size. Stepping into the corridor, Aiji called to the girls, "Let's go. I don't know about the Gryffindor dorms, but ours are a long way from here."

The girls nodded and followed, though Granger was the most unsure and kept sneaking glances back at the bathroom. She seemed to be moving mostly on auto-pilot, following the rest. Her eyes, when not looking behind her, trailed at Aiji's figure almost as though she had never seen anything like her before.

Sally-Anne noticed it first, as did the rest. It would do nobody any good to be linked to the troll. Sure, Aiji might be suspected, since she was probably one of the few students who had the physical capability to beat a troll. But, the Slytherin motto hung in their minds. "Admit nothing, deny nothing, make counter-accusations."

Their female 5th year prefect, Melinda Phetrine, had, after all, warned them that the rest of the school was liable to blame almost any slight to the Slytherins. As unlikely as it was for four first years to take another first year hostage and bring a troll to school, it'd still be in the grapevine because said first years were Slytherins.

Lythiel took out her own beech wand and used the "point me" spell to take them to the Slytherin dorms. Aiji opened her senses for any living beings that might see them and took suggestions from Hiei. Daphne was subtly checking up on everyone, making sure no one was hurt, Aiji in particular. Hence why Daphne all but hovered over the shorter girl like a shield.

Meanwhile, Sally-Anne was thinking of ways to silence the "weakest link." Granger was a certified rule-abiding goody-two-shoes. Unlike Sally-Anne, who was merely teacher's pet and charmer, Granger would feel compelled to tell the truth to the professors. Especially if she felt that she did nothing wrong.

'Let's see, she's a know-it-all and likes to rub it in people's faces that she knows something. Probably a reaction to being new to this world and wanting to prevent others doing the same to her or worse… She's obsessed about following the rules, as strict as McGonagall, very preoccupied with how the professors might view her…'

Sidling up to Granger, Sally-Anne commented, "Let's just hope that none of the professors find out we were there with the troll. I mean, for all that we know, we might be accused of being the ones that let the troll in."

Granger jerked as though she'd been slapped, "That's preposterous! How can five first years like us bring a _mountain troll_ to school?!"

Making a show of snorting, Sally-Anne continued as though her friends weren't giving her questioning glances, "Oh, come on, Granger! Any idiot can trick a mountain troll into doing what they want, it's common knowledge. Besides, there were five of us, four among us being close friends, in the bathroom. One or two students could be written off as victims of circumstances, but five? To an outsider, it'd look like we brought the troll in here for x or y reasons, realized the panic we produced was counter-productive, and tried to do damage control."

Hermione's lips trembled, the (sincere) conviction in Sally-Anne's features and voice was as credible as the reasoning. Indeed, had Hermione herself been one of the professors, she would have raised more than an eyebrow at the situation. But, still, her teachers knew her to be a serious student! And what about innocent until proven guilty? Surely they wouldn't…

"When you think about it, we are almost the ideal suspects," Sally-Anne continued, studying Granger's expression. Just a bit more… "I mean, you and Ai would be considered to be the perpetrators upon first glance."

Bingo.

"What is that supposed to mean!?" Granger, red-faced, snarled at Sally-Anne.

"Not too sure about you," Aiji flippantly entered the conversation, "But in my case, everyone knows I'm something of a violent maniac. The Profs might think that Daff, Ly, and Sal tricked the troll to enter the school because I wanted to wrestle it or something since we can't go to the Forbidden Forest."

Hermione opened her mouth to refute that ridiculous… on second thought, from what she'd heard of the rumors and from what she'd seen with her own eyes, Potter would do something like that.

"Alright," Hermione conceded, "I'll admit that explains why Potter would be falsely suspected. But why would _I _be suspected as well?" Hermione glared at Sally-Anne all the while ignoring Aiji's grimace at her un-chosen name.

"Simple," Sally-Anne smiled as she aimed for the kill, "You're always trying to show everyone up with the knowledge you've accumulated over the summer. Clearly, you feel that even though you are a muggleborn you are not inferior to everyone else who's had a head start over you, so to speak. Therefore, it is easy enough to guess that you have something to prove. Prove that you are just as good a witch as any other pureblood child, maybe even better. The profs might assume that you brought the troll here to prove you can take it on with only minimal instruction, therefore proving you are better than everyone else." At Granger's glare, Sally-Anne amended, "I'm not saying you are, but others would perceive it that way. Especially Professor Snape. He already considers you as an "insufferable know-it-all," his words not mine."

Hermione faltered upon hearing her Potions Professor's name. Yes, as much as Hermione hated to criticize a professor, he would paint her in that horrible light. In class, he'd always assume Hermione and the other Gryffindors were guilty of anything and everything. As far as he was concerned, you were guilty before proven innocent. Even though Hermione always tried her best and was among the better students in Potions…

Seeing that her words were getting to Granger, Sally-Anne decided on her coupe de grace, "And, really, I don't feel like being expelled from Hogwarts just because I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Next time, we are so taking the trip to the dorms, no matter how far they are."

At the word "expelled," a word worse than death in Hermione's book, Hermione all but snarled, "They can never know we were at the bathroom!"

Daphne, Aiji, and Lythiel found it slightly scary how Sally-Anne had Hermione Granger, one of this year's brightest students, dancing to her tune like a marionette.

'This must be how Son Goku felt at the Buddha's hands,' Aiji sweat-dropped.

"What bathroom?" Sally-Anne asked, perfectly somber. "In fact, what are you doing so close to the Slytherin dorms?"

"I never saw or heard you in the bathroom," Hermione affirmed, "Likewise, you never saw or heard me."

"You know the "point me" spell?" Aiji asked. Hermione nodded and was about to perform it but Aiji stopped her, "Hold off on it for a moment. Count to twenty, Peeves should be gone by then."

Hermione gazed suspiciously at Aiji, "How do you know that?"

"Let's just say that I've been tracking his movements ever since that paint-ball fiasco," Aiji grinned. Hermione though that Aiji had placed a tracking charm on the poltergeist, but Aiji was just using Hiei's Jagan to keep an eye on him, no pun intended.

"You certain you don't want one of us to stay here until it's safe to move?" Daphne asked.

"No, it's fine, I, I'll be fine," Hermione said. It's hard to feel anything but friendly to someone that had just saved your life in one way or another.

Hermione just stood there, blushing, unsure, "Thanks." Whether she meant gratitude for the advice, the offer, the discretion, the cooperation, or the save, Aiji didn't know.

"See you tomorrow then," Lythiel, the most socially awkward of the quartet outside of her friends, smiled. "Hopefully, the professors will be too busy with the troll to notice any missing students."

Hermione nodded, then smiled, "You should run to your dorms, I'll be fine thanks to A… Aiji's warning."

Aiji smiled, "Good luck."

The quartet departed and made their way to their dorm. Dodging and ducking the ever-watching eyes of the paintings, the girls made it to the dungeons with no one the wiser and time to spare. "Rise of the Dark!"

Tiamat pushed her painting to the side, but hissed an amused, "you've been missed."

At Aiji's grimace, Sally-Anne correctly deduced, "I take it that we better have an excuse ready?"

"If you don't mind, we'd like to hear it now," said Melinda Phetrine, startling them. Behind her was her tall male counterpart, Kazutoshi Shinmei, who for once wasn't amused. Their sixth year colleagues, Nasrin Adel and Ezven Holic, both looked like they wanted to strangle the girls right there.

"Peeves," Lythiel blurted out the first thing on her mind.

"Peeves?" Ezven echoed, silently demanding an explanation.

"Yeah, Peeves," Aiji said, "See, Ly here's going through her first period," she started, hoping that propriety would cease the interrogation. Aside from the blush on Melinda's cheeks that matched her hair, there was, surprisingly, no reaction. "So we kinda rushed to the dorms to get some pads or something."

"But Peeves had intercepted us and started teasing Ly about it," Sally-Anne said. "He was following us around so much that Ai here lost her temper—"

"And used that wicked mace of hers on Peeves," Daphne said. "We kinda lost track of the time since we traded off on beating him up with the mace and spells!"

Lythiel nodded, not saying anything.

Kazutoshi smirked, "That's an entertaining, if unorthodox, cover story to tell the professors, especially since Peeves has probably been up to some mischief. Now, where were you four, really?"

"And please tell us you were nowhere near the troll," Nasrin said, pinching her nose to ward off a headache. 'Too bad they're only eleven, otherwise we could just play it off as them doing what every horny teenager does in a boarding school.'

"Troll? What troll?" Lythiel asked, the perfect picture of confusion.

"Did Parkinson put you up to it?" Daphne asked.

"Just because we made her think that Awn was going to take her soul this morning," Aiji said.

"Ai, I don't think that's helping our case," Sally-Anne said.

"That was you?" Kazutoshi let out a cackle. "Next time you want to scare the princess, do it at a decent hour, will you."

"Shinmei!" the other three prefects scolded him.

"She's an early riser," Aiji shrugged. Out of all the prefects, she liked Kazutoshi-sempai the best. He was the most likely to let her get away with things, if only for the entertainment she wrought.

"All joking aside," Kazutoshi said, all of a sudden serious. "Where were you lot when Quirell made his _heroic _entrance and warned us there was a troll in the dungeons?"

"We realize that Quirell is completely inept as a teacher," Nasrin said, "but you all do realize that a troll, while mentally deficient, is still a dangerous creature?"

"We didn't even know there was a troll, we weren't at the Hall when Quirell supposedly announced there was one," Sally-Anne said, sticking close to the truth.

"This is what happens when you plan to prank annoying bitches," Aiji mumbled, purposefully letting the prefects hear her.

Clearly, the prefects didn't fully believe them, even though the planning to prank someone bit was credible.

"Um, may we be excused?" Lythiel asked. "Daff probably has to go celebrate Samhain soon, Ai needs her rest for tomorrow's game, and I really want to change."

"Ly really is having her first period," Sally-Anne said while blushing.

Ezven signaled to Daphne and pointed to the left, "Go to the Common Room and find Flint. They'll be going soon."

Daphne gazed at her friends worriedly but left, all too glad to leave the interrogators.

Nasrin then grabbed Lythiel's shoulder and gently led her in the direction of the first years' dorms, "Go get changed and wash yourself. I'll pass you a potion if there's any pain."

Gazing at the two remaining girls, the prefects all waited for them to spill.

'Divide and conquer,' Sally-Anne and Aiji noticed.

"What? It's not like we planted cherry bombs on the toilets," Aiji snapped.

"I should hope you have more finesse than that," Kazutoshi grinned.

"We do, otherwise, Parkinson would not have bawled like a baby this morning," Sally-Anne drawled.

Ezven, with his quiet and stern presence, wouldn't let some things go, "That still does not prove that you weren't there at the Great Hall. It's your word against whoever can accuse you."

"Look, others will accuse you lot of bringing the troll in here because you're Slytherins," Melinda said. "We need to know why you weren't there at the Great Hall and where you were to make counter-arguments."

"They weren't at the Great Hall," Morag McDougal said as she entered. "Saw them leave before Quirell barged in, about ten minutes before. Too little time for them to even get outside the wards. And they couldn't have planned it before since yesterday they were with me, preparing for this morning's prank."

Good ole Morag. Her need to avenge her purloined book had led her to conspire with the quartet against Davis and now she was giving them an alibi in return.

"We left the Hall because Ly wasn't feeling good," Aiji pressed on, "Her cramps were bothering her. Of course, we figured out what it was after we left the Hall and found an unused classroom for her to rest."

"Now that I believe," Kazutoshi said. "See girls, the trick to creating convincing alibis is to keep things simple."

Ezven and Melinda looked like they wanted to argue but Kazutoshi interrupted them, "It's late, and Urameshi-kun has her first game tomorrow. It'd be pretty embarrassing to lose just because our new beater's too tired to hit properly."

"Thanks, sempai," Aiji chirped. "Let's go Sal."

Sally-Anne nodded towards the prefects, "Have a good night." The girls left for their dorms and some actual rest. Aiji promised herself and Hiei that she'd scope out the third floor after the game.

They didn't notice that when the prefects left for their duties, Kazutoshi lingered at the entrance with what looked like a communicator on hand. Grinning, he closed the flap, put the devise somewhere inside his voluminous robes, and left. He waved at the air, almost as though there was someone else watching him.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(1) Since the wizarding world is pretty much behind the times in many areas, I'm going to assume that it's the same in this one. My grandmother (a whoopin' 85 year old) once told me an embarassing anecdote about washing her own menstrual blood out of her knickers when I bitched about the cramps. Apparently, until very recently, read: 50 years ago or so, women had to use extra thick wool knickers when they had their period. It was non-disposable and they had to wash the blood off constantly. Since the wizarding world wouldn't use something as modern as a tampon or pad, I'll just say that this is what girls use instead. Yeah, I prefer the new stuff too.


	8. The possession of a greedy bugger

Here it is! Chapter 8 and the action's picking up! Let's see what you guys think of this... a Quidditch game as told by the beater's point of view. First sports work, so let's see how you guys like it.

~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%&^*()~!#$^*()~!#$^*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&(*)~!#$%^&()~!#%&^*()~!#$%&*()

The day for Aiji to prove her mettle had come… All right, the first Quidditch match of the school year had begun. But, considering that this was Aiji's first competition and it was against Gryffindor, House of the "Human Bludgers" Weasleys, the day deserved a rather cliché and catchy title.

Excitement brewed in her. A maniacal gleam entered her eyes as she stroked her club. Just the thought of knocking a player down and cracking bones and blood spewing had her drooling. Fingering her Nimbus 2000, she couldn't help but recall her acquisition of the broom. Snape had given her the magnificent broom, free of monetary charge (an important detail to a poor student trying to make ends meat), he had promptly told her "I don't want any excuses for losing, there had better be some injuries on the opposing party, understood?" It would be a request she'd gladly accomplish.

"Let's move it," Flint barked. "Urameshi, don't even think about letting the Weasley twins overwhelm you. Break their arms if you have to, got it?"

His only response was a hedonistic smile that emulated all of her repressed violent tendencies.

Marching to the Pitch, they met up with the Gryffindor team in the middle along with Madam Hooch.

"And today we're starting with the epic Gryffindor vs. Slytherin battle to start the year. In the lion's den we've got Keeper and Captain Oliver Wood; Chasers Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinet, and Katie Bell; Beaters Fred and George Weasley; and Seeker Andrew Weber!"

Cheers and hoots surrounded the stadium, with the Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw sections raising red and gold flags in support. The Slytherins' boos and hisses were drowned out.

"And in the snake's nest we've got Chaser and Captain Marcus Flint; Keeper Miles Bletchley; Seeker Terrence Higgs; Chasers Adrian Pucey – what an apt name – and Mercutio Montague – sorry, ladies, he's no Romeo; Beaters Brian Derrick – no, before you can ask, that is his last name, not a middle one – and the newest addition to the playing brutes is Miss Violent Maniac, Fighting "King" Urameshi herself, Alyssa Potter!"

This time, the cheers were drowned out by boos, hisses, and laughter. Of course, Aiji had to have the last word, "It's URAMESHI AIJI, Teme! Get it through your thick, and admittedly vapid, skull!"

While McGonagall scolded Jordan, as usual, Hooch decided to start, "Now, I want a nice clean game from both of you." Wood and Flint squished, err, shook hands.

Mounting their brooms, they all took off into the air, waiting for the signal. Aiji perused her competition. The identical redheads were doing the same with her and gave off a sadistic aura. Aiji liked them immediately.

At Hooch's whistle, the quaffle and bludgers were released. Aiji and Derrick went to control a bludger at the same time as the Weasley twins. Each team had one in control within seconds and were passing them to their partner and back, waiting for an opportunity.

Aiji saw her chance and attacked.

"Gryffindor in possession, Johnson started of on a good foot with that catch. She's free from Flint and Montague, so it should—look out!!"

Johnson didn't have time to shout as Aiji's bludger hit her side with the speed of a bullet. Only experience and sheer bullheadedness kept her from falling from her broom and cradling her ribs. The quaffle fell from her numb arm and Pucey grabbed it.

"Man! Did anyone see that? I didn't even see the bludger until it was about to hit her. Guess those rumors about "Monster Strength" Potter were true."

"Jordan, the game!"

"Pucey in possession, he's gone past Spinet –you'll get him next time Alicia! – and Bell is being blocked by Montague. Hey, you're not Romeo! No, means no!"

"Jordan!"

Fred slammed the bludger in Pucey's direction, only for Derrick to block it. George sent another volley, but Pucey had dodged and Aiji slammed it back at George's tail. George cried as he lost balance and almost fell if Fred hadn't caught him.

"Shit! One Weasley was almost downed. Man, can Potter play rough. Come on Wood, you're the only thing standing in the way of a score. Make the block!"

Wood, keeping his nerves of steel, didn't pay any attention to the chaos and blocked the shot, barely. Only for Flint to grab it on the rebound and shoot again. This time, he scored.

"No! Flint scored. 10-0 in favor of Slytherin. That cheating, nasty—"

"Jordan, either you comment objectively or I'll take the mike away!"

Johnson had the quaffle, but her reaction time was slower by three seconds. Clearly, Aiji's shot had done more damage than she thought. She had felt her ribs and noted wit relief that nothing was broken, yet. However, bruised ribs were going to be a hindrance. With a scowl, she passed the quaffle to a nearby Spinet.

Fred and George were trying their damndest to block any shots from Derrick and Aiji. Aiji almost got one past them, but George had changed its direction at the last minute. It caused all the players to chase after a bludger.

Aiji caught one first and, surprising many, shot it at… the Slytherin Keeper?!?!

"What are you DOING?!?!?!" Flint bellowed.

Bletchley whimpered and ducked… only he needn't have as the bludger bounced off the metal part of the hoop on top of him and flung itself at Spinet. Spinet, who was ready to take a shot, had paused and had no way to defend or dodge the bludger. It hit her dead on the stomach, causing the quaffle to fall. She fell off her broom and plummeted down to the ground back first.

"HOLY SHIT!!!"

McGonagall, for once, didn't correct his language as she stared at Alicia Spinet panting, looking as though she was about to vomit, and holding her stomach.

The Slytherin section was cheering like mad.

Montague passed by the injured Johnson and the shocked Bell to Wood. Fred made a bludger hit him but he passed the quaffle to Pucey. Pucey made another shot at Wood, it was blocked. Pucey did the rebound himself and shot again. He scored.

Spinet, instead of staying down, slowly stood up and called her CleanSweep 7 to her. She remounted and joined the fray with a determined look on her face.

Encouraged, the other lionesses upped their game. Too bad for them that the snakes had suffered the same as them and were forced to play like that by Aiji.

Fred and George decided to get rid of the main threat and aimed a bludger at Aiji's side. Aiji had tossed one at Bell's tail-end, causing the girl to almost fall, leaving Montague free to fly towards Wood.

Aiji felt the bludger hit her side and grabbed it!

She turned to the twins, smirked, and hit it right back, this time Fred really did fall from his broom and George abandoned his post to catch him.

Wood was the better Keeper, there was no doubt about it. That was why they had to keep the Chasers away from Bletchley. So, another injured Chaser it was.

Using the Weasleys' distraction to her advantage, Aiji signaled to Derrick to sidetrack Bell. Getting the second bludger, Aiji waited for right moment to attack and the slammed her club.

Katie Bell's scream brought everyone's attention to her. The bludger had hit the front tip of her broom when she had flattened herself, causing her to overbalance and she fell face first downward. Johnson grabbed her and, despite her protesting ribs, pulled her up into her broom. They needed Bell to stay uninjured, already the Gryffindors were suffering from Johnson and Spinet's performance while wounded.

In the meantime, the Slytherin Chasers overwhelmed a panting Spinet and scored another ten points in a triple rebound.

"That's 30-0 to Slytherin. And they… actually, Potter is following the rules." Jordan sounded like a muggle who had found a centaur on his backyard.

Aiji felt a rush at the challenge Fred and George presented. They grinned back, enjoying finally having a rival that didn't take the game personally, though she was a bit too violent.

Aiji took another bludger to the side, unhurt, and retaliated by smashing one at Bell's side. Bell held on and lost the quaffle, holding her side precariously. Not even Fred an George could hit that hard. 'No wonder they're not cheating, they don't need to with her on their side!'

The Gryffindor Chasers continued to take much punishment from Aiji. Fred and George had managed to nick at the Slytherin Chasers, but it was almost as though they had gotten better at dodging and when they did hit, 3 times out of ten they shrugged it off. This wasn't good. It was time to get serious.

Aiji was having fun, keeping Fred and George from attacking her teammates was tricky. They were strong and creative, both had somehow managed to corner Derrick while she dealt with the lionesses and knocked him off his broom temporarily.

Her broom gave an unexpected buck. "Huh?" It continued bucking and rising until she was floating above the twins. Her bewildered expression stayed their hand and they watched in growing horror as the broom became violent in its efforts to dislodge Aiji.

"It's bewitched!" George cried as he threw the bludger in a random direction.

Aiji held on and immediately sought Hiei, 'Hiei-nii who's doing this!?'

'Give me a minute,' Hiei growled back. 'Don't worry, I'll have the fool gutted before you land.'

'No, let me handle 'em. I've gotta let 'em know what happens when you screw around with me. Besides, we won't be able to explain away someone's disappearance, so just tell me let me handle it.'

Meanwhile, everyone else on the Pitch saw Aiji, red with the fury of a pregnant dragon, curse up a storm about her enemy's dubious manhood, dubious parentage, their future as a chew toy for perverts…

"WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU, YOU DICKLESS FUCKER, I'M GONNA SKIN YOU ALIVE AND USE YOUR INTESTINES AS A URINAL. I'LL THROW YOUR ASS-CHEEKS IN A CAGE FULL OF MATING GORILLAS, YOU HEAR ME!?! AND YOU KNOW WHAT? I'LL EVEN SELL YOUR MEAT AT THE DEMON MARKETPLACE AND USE YOUR BONES TO MAKE A SWORD!! I'LL TEAR YOUR SPINE FROM YOUR BODY, IF YOU EVEN HAVE ONE, DO YOU, YOU SPINELESS LITTE SHITHEAD OF A COWARD!?!?!

One really had to wonder if she was ever a sailor. A Japanese one as she switched languages and continued to curse just as fluently.

Unexpectedly, Aiji drew her arm back and, with a roar, threw her club at the terrified stands. The club sailed at breakneck speed and hit Quirell with the strength of a brick wall. Coincidentally, or not, when Quirell was hit with the club (and passed out from the pain) Aiji's broom stopped trying to buck her off.

The twins stared at her in astonishment, then whistled, "Remind us-"

"To never-"

"Ever piss you off-"

"Under any circumstances."

Aiji grinned, "Consider yourselves warned." Derrick had made it up and inquired about her status. "I'm okay, just a bit pissed off, nothing a broken limb or two won't cure."

"But you lost your club!" Fred gently reminded her.

Aiji's smirk promised no salvation, "So?"

A stray bludger came at them. To demonstrate her point, Aiji punched it at Johnson's side. She shrieked as it hit her arm and crushed the quaffle between her sore ribs and hurting arm. Quaffle and girl fell from the sky.

Aiji smiled, almost sweetly, at the twins, "Sorry lads, I know you two had no part in this but that is all I know. Considering what just happened," a dark, menacing aura surrounded Aiji, little demonic spirits seemed to sprout from her, "the gloves are off."

The twins and Derrick gulped.

Aiji threw herself at the game with a blazing combat aura. She hit a bludger with a revolving spin and hit first Bell, then Johnson, the Spinet, and it even landed a blow at the unsuspecting Weber. She went to the rebound by standing up straight on her broom, flying it like a surfer, grabbed a bludger with her bare hand, threw it upwards, and then kicked it.

It first hit the metal part holding the Gryffindor hoop up, then it ricocheted at Weber, it bounced off him (and made him fall) and slammed a close by Spinet, and it returned to Aiji.

Montague had scored with Pucey's aid, so Bell took the quaffle from in front of Wood. Bad idea. Aiji kicked the bludger at Bell an put a little too much power into it. The result: Bell took the bludger to the stomach, sailed back and crashed into Wood. Wood and Bell fell from the impact.

Hooch spelled them to separate so they didn't fall together and fatally hurt themselves but did nothing else. "Urameshi attacked a quaffle-wielding Chaser, a per the rules dictate. Bell was in front of Wood and his crash was due to the supreme force behind the bludger. As he was not a direct target, it does not violate the rules."

Aiji saw that Higgs was still, his calm posture told her that he knew where the Snitch was. He was waiting for Flint to give a signal before catching it.

"HIGGS!" Aiji bellowed, "Either you get the Snitch within ten minutes or you'll be keeping the bees company!!!"

See what good motivation did to a person?

Higgs took off as if the Kwn Awn were at his heels. He had developed a slight aversion to bees recently, though Aiji didn't understand why.

Fred and George were attempting damage control by blocking and attacking the Slytherin Chasers. Their desperation and anger (at what had happened to Aiji) fueled them. By now, each team had to watch out for its own terror. The Slytherins were gaining more bruises and fractures from the twins. Meanwhile, the Gryffindors were learning just why an angry Urameshi should be avoided.

In the end, it was probably a good thing that it was all up to Higgs and Weber.

The Snitch flew away, each boy trying his damndest to end the game with their team the victor. Higgs hated to do this to himself, but it was the only way to win. He pictured a swarm of bees behind him and sped off towards the snitch with a panic only one girl could induce in him. Adrenalin coursed through his veins as the Snitch got closer, closer, closer, caught!

"Higgs caught the Snitch!" Jordan announced, "that means that Slytherin wins with 200 points over 90." He scowled, "Coincidentally, the Gryffindors caught up to them and advanced in points when Potter's broom wasn't behaving itself. Now that they've, relatively, abstained from cheating, is this going to become a one-woman team?"

"JORDAN! We are _not_ sore losers, keep that in mind," though the dissatisfied mien on her face belayed that.

Aiji couldn't really fault them. After all, if one looked at technique and athletic ability, the Gryffindor team had the Slytherin team beaten hands-down. Her team had mostly won its games with strategy and cheating.

It didn't surprise her, before she took over, the Slytherin team did more cheating strategizing than actual physical drills or practice. Wood, on the other hand, trained his team to the bone daily and made sure they were in top form. The Slytherin team had a lot to make up for in terms of physicality. After all, the reason athletes and martial artists train a lot is so that when the big one came their bodies moved without thinking. The Slytherin team didn't have the muscle memory, the stamina, or the physical discipline that the Gryffindor team had.

The only cure for it was regular training. Obviously, they didn't improve by leaps and bounds with only a month's worth of constant, Genkai-esque training. It needed to be gradual.

Thankfully, Daphne, though she grumbled about it, was diligent with her training and snapped at any idiot that slacked off. Whoever Higgs' replacement would be, as he was also graduating this year, he or she would have to get used to the tough regimen Aiji imposed on the team.

Slight guilt tore at her when she noted Wood leaning all his weight on his left leg and broom, Spinet was cradling her dislocated shoulder and holding herself stiffly (no doubt her back was smarting), Johnson was backstraight as she sucked her breath and held her by-now-broken ribs with her non-fractured arm, Bell's right arm was actually broken (Aiji noted with a wince), Weber was nursing his ribs and bleeding temple, and the Weasley twins were arrayed with bruises.

Aiji went up to the team and bowed slightly, "Excuse me," she said, "I wanna a-a-a-a-apologize for the uh, you know, way I kinda singled you guys out at the end." Oh dammit, it never got easier to apologize.

Surprisingly, the Weasley twins merely laughed, "Hey, I'd be pissed too if someone cursed my broom like that," Fred said.

"Of course, we wouldn't have apologized for our not so gentlemanly reaction afterwards," George quipped.

"Or for jumping to logical conclusions," Fred finished.

"Even though we're a bit miffed to be compared to your team," George sniffed.

"No offence meant, mate," Fred was quick to reassure.

"None taken," Aiji said. "AIJI!" Lythiel, Sally-Anne, and Daphne (who was clad in her Quidditch uniform, just in case) ran up to her and hugged her.

"Are you okay? They're reviving Quirell and they're going to ask about what he did to your broom—"

"Snape's having kneazles and breathing fire even as we speak—"

"That was awesome! I didn't know you could throw that far or that hard! I think you broke the jackass' nose!"

"Quirell?" Spinet's eyes boggled. "What does he have to do with anything?"

"As soon as he passed out, Aiji's broom stopped trying to buck her off," Lythiel said. "It just proved that it was him since I was going to push him or something to make him stop the enchantment."

"How do you know that?" Weber asked, a hint of uncertainty in his tone.

"He was staring at Aiji the whole time, unblinking," Lythiel continued in a monotone, clinical voice. "Enchantments like these on the fly require for the caster to have constant eye-contact on the victim. Even one little twitch of a lash can disrupt the spell. Also, as I've claimed, the broom stopped its odd behavior as soon as he passed out, i.e. as soon as he lost eye-contact on Aiji."

"He could be framed!" Weber defended, "I mean, the real culprit could have just used him as a scapegoat and maybe is going to try again when Potter feels safe."

"That doesn't explain why he had the look of utmost concentration, as though he were casting a spell," Lythiel argued back.

"Whatever," Sally-Anne cued in, "They're interrogating him even as we speak. We'll know our answer soon enough."

Aiji decided on one last thing before leaving the Pitch, "Oh, Weasley-tachi, I forgot to introduce your new rival," she pointed at Daphne, "This is Daphne Greengrass, next year's Beater and the partner I'm training with. Hopefully, we'll have a fun match next time without the rigged game."

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The story about Quirell and the enchanted broom was a popular one for the Grapevine. Quirell hadn't denied that he had bewitched Aiji's broom, he had admitted that he'd done it to defend the underdog Gryffindor team who never caught a break. It was a great shameful day for the Gryffindors, to the point that Oliver Wood had extended a public apology to the Slytherin team, Aiji in particular. Of course, it took a long time for her to convince Wood that all was well.

Quirell was, if possible, the most disliked of all the professors. Even more so than boring Binns or spiteful Snape. The Gryffindors bristled at the man that pitied them and considered them underdogs. They hated that he had made cheaters out of them and put them on the Slytherins' level. The Hufflepuffs sided with the Gryffindors and watched him to make sure he didn't do worse to the "Lame House," as many idiots called them. The Ravenclaws already disliked him for his incompetence and this added more wood to the fire. As for the Slytherins, well, they all wanted his head on a pike, that's what they wanted.

Aiji, on the other hand, suspected foul play. Okay, it was more like she took Hiei's advice to heart and believed him when he said that Quirell was willfully possessed. Paranoid Sally-Anne was convinced he was a Voldemort-sympathizer ("After all, it's suspicious that he'd choose _this year_, your first since disappearing among muggles, to teach."). Daphne was ready to curse him on sight. Lythiel never said anything, but Aiji wondered what part of _Carnivorous Flora_ by Orchid Venus she was hoping to apply on him.

Sadly, she couldn't investigate the Third Floor. Quirell couldn't make a move either due to all the attention on him. However, instead of pressing the timing to her advantage, over-protective Hiei in big brother mode (tm) had told her to wait until he got back, just in case. Hiei had gone an hour after the game, Koenma had summoned him, said that it was an emergency. Hiei had been disgruntled but he'd gone. Before leaving, though, he had told Aiji, serious as death, to be wary of Kazutoshi-sempai.

'Wonder why?' Aiji sighed as she ate another cauldron cake. She had finished her morning training and was taking a break along with the girls. It was Sunday, the day after the Quidditch match, no one would be out and about as early as 7 am. They could take their time, they only woke up early and snuck out of the dorms out of habit.

"Haa~" Sally-Anne sighed, catching the rest of the girls' attention. "What's up, Sal?" Aiji asked.

"Oh, nothing, I just got a Rowena Ravenclaw card," Sally-Anne showed her chocolate frog prize.

"Wow, that's a rare one," Daphne said. "So far, all I've been getting is Dumbledore and Agrippa."

"What are you upset about?" Lythiel cut into the pleasantries.

"Nothing just… Her robes are of a fine quality if a bit old-fashioned, the tome she's holding is at the Anglo Sorcery Museum, and the tiara on her head has got to cost at least as much as phoenix tears just because it belonged to her and it's missing."

"In other words," Lythiel said. "You're feeling greedy and you want to be the one to find the lost Diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw just to get some money."

"Lythiel," Sally-Anne deadpanned. "If I were to find the Diadem, I'd be able to retire now and live the rest of my days in luxury. I wish the Diadem were in my hands right now."

All of a sudden, the forest disappeared and was replaced by a dimly lit room. On a low table, there sat a rusted bronze tiara, clearly it hadn't been used or polished in ages.

Lythiel snorted, "There's no way _that_ can be the Diadem. If wishes became true just like that, I'd have average magical levels by now!"

Sally-Anne approached the tiara as though it would disappear at any moment. Touching it hesitantly, she put it up to eye level. Eyes widening, lips trembling with suppressed maniacal laughter, Sally-Anne crowed, "Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure!"

"You mean, it's the real deal?" Daphne asked, astonished. Lythiel scoffed, "Preposterous, don't you think someone would have found it before us if it was here the whole time?"

"How many people know of this place besides the House-Elves?" Aiji challenged.

"Besides, this place only brings out objects we _need _or _desire_," Sally-Anne wasn't letting anyone crush her dream of a lifetime of opulence, "It's the perfect place to hide something, so long as the ones that come here don't look for the hidden object. As expected of Rowena Ravenclaw."

Aiji was uncomfortable, she didn't know why, but something about the tiara screamed 'danger' to her. It could have something to do with how Sally-Anne's fingers were cradling the thing possessively and greedily, but that was normal. What really got to Aiji was how Sally-Anne's eyes were becoming more vacant by the second.

"Mind if I take a look at this tiara," Aiji asked, only for Sally-Anne to snarl at her. 'What—' she didn't finish her thought as raw magic began to surround Sally-Anne.

"Sal!"

"What the—"

"It's a possession!"

Sally-Anne, or whoever was possessing her, smirked in malicious glee. The diadem responsible for the transformation rested in a deceptively innocent manner on top of her head. "Bright ones, aren't you?"

Aiji snarled, "Who are you? What d'you want!"

"I'm hurt, child, don't you recognize me?" 'Sally-Anne' faux-pouted.

"Who Rando? Aren't you supposed to be in prison?" Aiji scratched her head.

Sally-Anne face-vaulted, "No, I am not this Rando person!"

"Genbu? Byakko? Seiryuu? Suzaku?"

"No, no, no and NO!" Sally-Anne stomped on the ground with her foot.

"I've got it!" Aiji pointed at her, "You're Toguro-otouto, aren't you? Listen man, when my nii-chan killed you, it was because he thought you killed Kazuma-nii. Besides, didn't you want to die?"

"No, I am not this Toguro, try again!"

"Let's see… you're, hum, ah! You're Takane, from the Dark Tournament, aren't you? Look, if you're sore about me killing you, it was in self defense! You were about to chop my head off!"

"You—"

"Besides, the rules were simple, kill or be killed," Aiji stopped paying attention to the possessed Sally-Anne. "It's not my fault you were too slow to dodge my rei-gun. If you're going to hold a grudge, at least be mature about it!"

Daphne and Lythiel stood to the side, perplexed. If this weren't so serious they'd be laughing at the absurd picture before them.

"Look, if you wanna fight me at least possess some asshole. I'll feel guilty for hitting Sal, 'specially since she's the physically weakest one of us all. Couldn't you have possessed Parkinson-teme or Malfoy-teme? I wouldn't have minded breaking their arms," Aiji scowled.

Sally-Anne, finally losing her patience, took out her oak wand and aimed an "_Umbra Inreto!_" at Aiji. Shadows came out of her wand heading for Aiji, she jumped into the air. Daphne and Lythiel shrieked when their own shadows grabbed their middles. Daphne got out her wand from her sweats' pocket and flashed an "_Incendia Orbis_" at Sally-Anne. The fireball missed, further giving the possessed girl's spell more shadow ropes.

Aiji crouched down, somersaulted to the left, got in a handstand and jumped off into a jump-kick. Before she could hit her, Aiji's own shadow caught her foot. Daphne bellowed "_Ventus Orbis,_" this time at Aiji. Aiji sailed with the wind ball, smashing her fist on Sally-Anne's face. The shadows still kept coming even though Sally-Anne was barely cognizant.

Remembering her own match with the real Takane, Aiji yelled in Japanese, /I need this place to be filled with light! Without shadows, her power's useless!/

Lythiel called within herself all of the magic in her miniscule reserve. The room wasn't that expansive, she could do it. "_Lumos Maximus!!!_" she shouted as she poured all of her magic into that spell.

The room was illuminated, the flash blinded the possessed girl and dispelled her shadow entrapment spell.

Aiji took advantage of the moment to kick Sally-Anne's wand away from her person. Sally-Anne recovered enough to jump away. Her training just had to pay off at the most inopportune times. Aiji cursed herself for pulling her punch, but she couldn't bring herself to fully hit her friend, even if it was only her body.

Aiji wondered what she should do, she wasn't a ghost hunter, so how did she get rid of possessing spirits? She had to keep who she thought was 'Takane' distracted while she came up with a plan.

"How'd you possess Sal, bitch?" Aiji crouched into a fighting stance.

Sally-Anne laughed shrilly, "How else, with this," she pointed at the tiara. "Although, if the Diadem weren't such a magically potent object and if I weren't stuck in such a heady magical environment for so long, it would have taken me months for this level of possession." Beat. "Or maybe not, considering how much of a greedy bugger she is. With the right bribe, I could have had full control of this body long ago."

"Maybe," Aiji sweat-dropped. "But I'm too sure about the full-time part. Sal is selfish, she wouldn't want you having all the fun, glory and money."

"Perhaps, you know her best," she shrugged. "_Diffindo_" she shouted wandlessly. Aiji dodged the simple spell. Lythiel and Daphne ducked. Lythiel was panting from exertion but pushed herself forward. Daphne pointed her wand at Sally-Anne "_Terra Verbero._" The earth-made whip slammed into Sally-Anne's stomach. Grinning, the possessed girl grabbed the whip and shouted out "_Stupefy!_"

Daphne was held still via the whip as the spell hit her full-force. She was knocked unconscious. Lythiel grabbed the oak wand and jumped back.

Meanwhile, in those precious seconds, Aiji was teleported to the room's corner by… Slinky the House-Elf?!

/What the—/

/No time, Aiji-sama. Slinky needs to say Mysterious Masky's message before bad spirit can hurt Aiji-sama-tachi no more!/

/You better say something now! Takane-teme's about to kill my friends!/

/The crown! The crown be the source, that what Mysterious Masky say!/

/The crown?/ Aiji frowned, then grinned. /As soon as I'm done with this spirit, bring in this Mysterious Mask guy, will you? By force if necessary. That's an order, by the way./

Slinky nodded, almost dislodging his own head in the process, /Yes, Aiji-sama. Will do, Aiji-sama!/ he plopped away.

Lythiel was dodging from the simple but powerful wandless spells Sally-Anne sent her way. The only thing that kept her at her feet were her iron will and the martial arts training.

Aiji, after dispelling the restraints enough so she was at her pre-Dark Tournament level, slammed her fist into the ground, it cracked under her fist, causing fissures along the way. Sally-Anne lost her footing in the cracks that formed beneath her and fell. Aiji followed it up with an elbow to her stomach. Sally-Anne grabbed her arm and tried to break it but Aiji tossed her to the other side of the room. Sally-Anne smashed the ground with a crack but stood up, wincing, with a spell on her lips.

Aiji rushed to her and then, instead of punching her, backflip kicked her. Sally-Anne went flying upwards from the impact, then lost consciousness when Aiji followed with an uppercut.

Sally-Anne hit the ground hard, unconscious, though Aiji could sense the spirit struggling to keep fighting. It wouldn't be able to, Sally-Anne's body couldn't stand any more punishment and her magic was shutting down to the spirit in an effort to heal the host body. The only reason that Sally-Anne's body wasn't even more damaged was due to the spirit's and (by manipulating it) her own magic that lined itself to her body like an armor. The magic had taken the most of the damage, probably the only reason why every bone in her body wasn't broken.

Remembering what Genkai had done to the brainwashed boys in the Ichigaki team, Aiji got her fingers together and prepared to chant. /I'm going to exorcise that bitch, Ly. Whatever you do, make sure she's distracted while I finish chanting./

Lythiel nodded from her position in front of Daphne. Aiji began chanting and Lythiel kept an eye on the possessed brunette. To her horror, Sally-Anne groaned and began to get up with severe difficulties. The damned spirit just refused to give up! 'It's got to have a huge reserve of magic to be able to get up after that!' Lythiel thought with horror.

Putting her beech wand and Sally-Anne's oak wand in Daphne's pocket, Lythiel slid into a fighting stance. As soon as Sally-Anne was up, Lythiel charged at her with a knife hand. Sally-Anne dodged it but wasn't prepared for Lythiel's following roundhouse. Sally-Anne hit the ground and Lythiel kneed her. Sally-Anne was about to hex her when Lythiel tossed her over her shoulder.

Sally-Anne elbowed Lythiel's stomach and crawled away and stood up. Lythiel recovered and swept Sally-Anne's feet from under her in a kick. Sally-Anne grabbed her and pulled her down to the ground with her. Both girls were at the end of their physical and magical limits. Sally-Anne had used a high tier continuous shadow spell and had exhausted her magic in wandless (although simple) spells. Even the spirit couldn't summon up its magic to permeate Sally-Anne's skin like an armor, it had been burned out by taking the brunt of Aiji's attack. If she wanted to do any more spellwork, she had to save up. Meanwhile, Lythiel had all but exhausted her meager magical reserves at that powerful illuminating spell.

Elbowing and scratching each other in a fight of dominance was the only way to go. Sally-Anne was at a disadvantage with her no-doubt-broken right ankle, various other injuries, and weak body. So when Lythiel was about to elbow her face… "_Petrificus Totalus!_"

Lythiel stared up in horror as her possessed friend somehow stood over her petrified body. 'Shit! Aiji hasn't finished chanting!'

Sally-Anne smirked, "Got something to say, little squib? Why not, everyone deserves a last word."

With a magnanimous wave, Lythiel felt her jaw loosen. In a split-second decision, she bellowed, "Sal! If you let this person possess you, I swear I'll find a way to tell the Perks Elders the truth!"

Sally-Anne's body stiffened.

"You'll be disowned! Even if it's only as a ghost, I'll make sure you're disowned and that none of the Perks money goes to you!"

Sally-Anne's body started convulsing. "What are you—"

"Even if this bitch inhabiting your body does make you rich, you won't be able to enjoy it! You'll be stuck in there, it's like you'll have the treasure chest but it's in the cell next to you and you can't open it or have anything to do with it!!"

Sally-Anne clutched her head, "What did you just—"

"And another thing!" Lythiel continued, spewing everything that came to mind, "You'll never know how _Les Rois Maudits _series ends because obviously this idiot probably doesn't even read fine literature or understand French!"

Sally-Anne snarled, "I resent that you little—"

"You can also kiss chocolate mignons or cream puffs or éclairs or chocolate ice cream goodbye!"

Sally-Anne turned red and snarled.

"Let's not forget, your secret addiction," Lythiel added as an afterthought, "Say goodbye to your _Saint Seiya_ collection, this bitch will probably burn them! No more fantasizing about those cute Saints going at it together. No more drooling over Shiryuu and Seiya; Shun and Hyoga; or Milo and Camus getting it on!"

"NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!" Sally-Anne shrieked. "GET. OUT. OF. MY. HEAD. _SALAUD_!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Rei Kou Hadou Ken!" Aiji's index and middle fingers glowed with an Avada Kedavra green light. She charged with such speed that she seemed to disappear from her position and reappeared in front of Sally-Anne. Aiji's reiki induced fingers pierced Ravenclaw's Diadem with a force that cracked the bronze. A shrill shriek that sounded like a badly played violin filled the room. A bright light flashed in the room, blinding everyone.

When the light dispersed, Aiji was left standing in front of an unconscious Sally-Anne. The Diadem had fallen off her head and had rolled off a few ways. Aside from a vicious crack in the center from Aiji's jab, it was intact.

Lythiel twitched, then struggled to sit up. The petrification spell's nullification was proof that Sally-Anne, or the spirit within her, was fully unconscious. "Did you expel it?" Lythiel croaked.

"Her reiki and magic feel fine," Aiji concentrated. "But I'm not sure, we need an expert to verify it."

/Aiji-sama!/ Slinky popped into the room.

/Slinky-kun,/ Aiji started, /Where is this Mysterious Mask bloke?/

/That is what Slinky want to tell Aiji-sama! Slinky no can bring other beings to Come and Go Room while other beings in it. Mysterious Masky try to come sooner and help but Room no let Slinky bring him!/

/I see, so that explains why he wasn't here,/ Aiji mused.

/Ano, Slinky-kun?/ Lythiel hesitantly started. /Why don't you just bring this bloke in front of the entrance./

/One of us will come out to meet him while the other holds the door open,/ Aiji finished the idea. /We need to be fast, we don't want any busybodies finding our spot or Sally-Anne like this./

/Aiji, it's not even eight in the morning. Everyone is sleeping./

/Still…/ Aiji sighed. /Just get this guy at the entrance, 'kay Slinky-kun?/

/Right away, Aiji-sama!!/ Slinky popped out.

/Can you wake Daff up?/ Aiji pointed at the unconscious brunette, /I'll feel better if you guys can watch her, hopefully while she's tied up./

/You sure you should meet this guy alone?/

/Positive,/ Aiji was firm. /I'm the only one of us who can still fight. He's fresh from not fighting. Meanwhile, Sal's body's too banged up to put up much of a fight while there's two of you to keep guard./

/Fine,/ Lythiel groaned, /Just, yell if you need help, alright?/

/Promise./

Lythiel retrieved her beech wand from Daphne's pocket, then pointed at Daphne with her last reserve "_Enervate._" Daphne groaned in pain, the throbbing on her head made everything fuzzy and disorienting. Then she sat up, wand in hand with a snarl… only to gape at the cataleptic Sally-Anne with a dented circlet a few feet away.

"What—"

"I'll explain in a moment, right now what we need is to tie Sal up, as a pre-caution that is," Lythiel quickly explained.

This was bad, the only one that was good at that kind of charm work was Sally-Anne. Watson, we have a problem.

"Okay, this can't be that hard," Daphne laughed nervously, "_Incarcerous._" Instead of the ropes binding her, they seemed ready to flog her. "_Finite Incantatem_," Aiji quickly casted before the first hit.

Aiji sighed in defeat, "Guess we'll have to do it the old fashioned way." To the room, "Some ropes, please." They appeared before her.

Lythiel took charge, "Alright, Ai, you meet this Fushigi Kamen bloke, Daff, you keep the Room's door open (only let Ai and the bloke she's with in). I'll tie the ropes on Sal."

Like veteran soldiers accustomed to obeying a drill sergeant, Aiji and Daphne marched off to he entrance. Aiji left the room with Daphne holding the door.

The person before her was tall, at least 6'2'' 'the lucky bastard.' He, for he was too flat and broad shouldered to even pass off as a crossdressing woman, was covered head to toe in black. Literally. He had a black leather trench-coat she was tempted to steal that reached his knees. Black combat boots, leather pants and a muscle shirt completed the ensemble. His face was covered by a black helmet that covered his upper-face and nose, leaving only part of his cheeks and his mouth for view.

/You should have been called Black Mask or Suspicious Mask,/ Aiji started, /Ignoring the fact that you sound like a kiddie superhero with that title, and that your otherwise cool costume is ruined by the helmet that makes you look like a Sentai character straight from Power Rangers, how did you know about that crown?/

The boy, or was it man? He looked at like he was sixteen but what self-respecting adolescent would wear a helmet like that? Anyway, he sweat-dropped a bit, /Urameshi-kun, so mean. And to think, I even went to the trouble of hiding my identity for your friends' sakes./

/So, how did you know?/ Aiji asked. He seemed familiar…

/Let's just say that I'm in the ghost, spirit, and soul exorcising business,/ he smiled with charm. Somehow, even with the gaudy helmet, he radiated an aura of sexiness and mystery that was hard to deny.

Aiji smirked, "So, you're one of Koenma's lackeys, huh? Backup?"

"Actually, you're backup. I've been what you would call a "sleeper" for my whole life."

Having never taken advantage of speaking to him in her first language, hearing him speak English made it easier to identify him, 'Got him.' /So, you're saying you're on the Voldemort mission too… Kazutoshi-sempai?/

He stilled, that brief hesitation marked him as Kazutoshi, /Let me assure you, Urameshi-kun, Shinmei-kun and I are not the same person. Although, I am highly flattered that you would compare me to such an attractive man./

/Oh, really?/ Aiji grinned, /You're really not him?/

/Nope./

/Really, _really_, not him?/

/No matter how many times you say it, my answer won't change./

/Good!/ Aiji smiled brightly, /Then that means I won't have to pretend that you're the most beautiful man in the whole school like I do with sempai!/

/Are—/

/I mean, he's good looking, don't get me wrong,/ Aiji said, /But Wood-kun is so much hotter and—/

/I'm much better looking than that broom-chasing jock! What the Hell's the fucking appeal, dammit! No one can compete with my pheromones, just ask any of the blokes and birds I've slept with! Why, I, I, I... you little bitch, you tricked me,/ Kazutoshi grimaced. Tricked by a kid, his family would never let him live it down.

/Maybe if you weren't so narcissistic, I wouldn't have been able to trick you so easily,/ Aiji amiably told him, /So, what's the deal?/

/Come on, let me go inside, I'll make sure your friend's alright, any explanations can wait later when we're alone,/ Kazutoshi started walking, /By the way, let me do the talking, I've already got an excuse for the spirit—/

/They already know who it is,/ Aiji interrupted, /Although, what I'd like to know is how did that person's soul get here?/

/They know?/ Kazutoshi gaped. 'Oh, great. Now I'll have to explain the whole story about the Horcruxes, maybe about the Reikai as well.' /How?/

/I kinda guessed while fighting Sal, err, possessed Sal,/ Aiji admitted, /We had words and now Daff and Ly and, of course Sal, know all about the stupid bitch. Well, not everything, but I'm pretty sure they got the picture./

Kazutoshi looked like he wanted to face-palm, /You… what's done is done. From what I hear from Slinky, the two blondes were helpful in keeping your controlled friend in line. Not to mention that if I were to erase her memory, Perks-chan might not recover after such an attack./

/It'll be okay, we made an Unbreakable Vow, an amateurish one, but still effective about keeping each other's secrets safe,/ Aiji reassured. She didn't want her friends to lose their memories just because of a dominatrix-wannabe shadow demoness wanted to get even.

/Why in Amaterasu's holy mirror would you lot do that?!/ Kazutoshi was baffled. /Did you guys do something horribly illegal in only a couple of weeks?/

/No, we just simultaneously figured out some surface secrets from each other and decided to keep quiet about it. You know, I'll keep your secrets safe if you keep mine kinda thing,/ Aiji said.

/Alright,/ Kazutoshi sighed. /As entertaining as this is, and I want a blow by blow account of the fight later on, we'll have to play it safe. I don't know about you, but Enma is going to fry my very delectable ass if he finds out about this. So mum's the word. Just let me explain everything, alright?/

/Sure,/ Aiji shrugged, /After you take a look at Sal, 'kay?/

/Deal,/ Kazutoshi grinned.

Little did they know that, because of the little misunderstanding, three witches would learn more about Voldemort and the Reikai than most normal people would ever know.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After a decade of imprisonment in this world's veritable, authentic, without-the-shadow-of-a-doubt Hell on Earth, Sirius Black would be the first to admit that his sanity was skewed. He would even go so far to say that, after this slow torture he was forced to endure, very little in this world could surprise him.

He proved himself to be an honest man. When three gorgeous-in-their-own-way blokes and a rather foxy bird infiltrated Azkaban and started killing Dementors, Sirius sat back, watched the greatest amusement he had seen in a decade, and even yelled out suggestions like a muggle would at a football game. This was one of his nicer fantasies, although he always imagined himself, or Moony, or an alive Prongs, or someone else he knew frying the Dementors, still beggars couldn't be choosers. Now he understood why many Azkaban prisoners came out psychotic. Morbid, violent thoughts such as gutting the people that got you in there or destroying the Dementors were not positive. True, they made some people happy, but there was a fine line there. Sometimes, the daydreams had too many negative emotions that the Dementors ignored the miniature happiness it wrought.

So, people could imagine Sirius' shock when one of the boys – the one with the slicked back dark green hair – broke the bars that separated his cell from the rest of the world. A chip from the bars thumped against his hand. Sirius jumped, eyes wide, and pinched himself. 'T-T-T-This is real?' Sirius dared himself to hope.

The boy seemed ominous with his ferocious snarl, muscular body, and the sheer power that radiated from him. Sirius saw a Dementor sneaking up behind the boy and opened his mouth to warn him—

"Rei Gun," the boy didn't even turn around as he pointed a glowing finger behind him. The blue beam hit the Dementor face first and the despicable being exploded. The woman and the redhead said something to the boy while the shortest one disappeared.

Sirius chocked on his non-existent spit as the woman, who was dressed as an Asian priestess of a sort (Japanese if he'd wager a guess), pulled out… muggle guns!?!

The woman smirked and fired off a barrage of silent bullets at the Dementors in front of her. The redhead left his post and ran to the malevolent-looking teen in front of Sirius. They both shielded him with their bodies and used more of that light (Patroni?) to drive away or destroy the Dementors.

As soon as there were no more Dementors near Sirius' cell, the woman started shooting in front of her, behind her, to her sides, anywhere and everywhere there was a Dementor. She always hit her target. 'Now _that_ is pro!' Sirius boggled.

He turned his attention to the boys in front of him. He blinked in surprise when he noted the dark-haired teen's comforting smile. It seemed sincere and made the boy much more approachable. "Daijobu," the boy said and continued saying something in Japanese that Sirius wasn't even going to pretend he understood.

Luckily, the redhead tapped the boy on the shoulder and said something. Then the redhead turned to Sirius, "I apologize," he said with a slight accent, "My companion can only speak enough English to ask directions for the bathroom. Seems he forgot we're not in Japan anymore."

Sirius merely nodded and would have said something if he didn't want to conserve the moisture in his parched throat. Surely the boys would get to the point of this rescue soon.

"We know you're innocent," that got Sirius' attention, "we also know who the real traitor is and how he got away. Hence, our little rescue party."

"Why?" Sirius croaked, "Even if you know the truth, why are you bothering to help me!"

"A-ri-sa-chan," the shorter boy stressed, the name hard to pronounce, "Po-ta."

"Alyssa!? What about her is she," Sirius began coughing, "is she, cough, okay, cough. What's, cough, wrong?!"

"Ore no imouto-chan," slicked hair said, struggling to find a translation, "Si-su-ta. Mai-nu."

"What?" Sirius couldn't have heard right, Alyssa wasn't this boy's sister, he probably got lost in translation.

"Alyssa Potter is indeed his sister," the redhead told him with conviction. "Are you aware that, upon her parents' deaths and your incarceration, your goddaughter was sent to live with her mother's sister's family?"

What?! No it couldn't be possible! Sure, Moony couldn't have gotten legal custody over Aly-bambi, but surely some kind of arrangement could have been made! Even with Alice and Frank incapacitated (damn you Bella!), ole Augusta could've taken their pup in legally and Remus could have taken care of her or something.

"No, you're lying!" Sirius choked out, "James, James never would've let his baby nowhere near those pigs! He even wrote it on the will, hell, Lily signed with her own blood for Aly-pup to stay away from 'em!" Sirius would have said more had he not started coughing again. The tanned boy started rubbing his back, his face scrunched in confusion but tense, obviously picking his cues from Sirius' emotions.

"I see," the redhead said, the damp cell turned artic cold with just his presence. "If that is true, then the Potters' will was either not read or blatantly ignored. Alyssa-chan was sent to live with them, shortly afterwards, a rotund man as Yuusuke," he nodded at the boy rubbing Sirius' back, "remembers brought her to Japan and left her in an alleyway. Yuusuke, being the adventurous six year old he was, took her back home with him. Thus Aiji Urameshi was born."

Sirius stared at the boy, not sure what to believe. It couldn't…

The boy, Yuusuke, brought his hand to his pocket. He took out a wallet and opened it. A picture was shoved in front of his face. Sirius stopped breathing. There she was, staring back at him with a cocky smirk and a victory sign, Alyssa had her father's face and messy hair along with her mother's eyes. Her famous lightning bolt scar peaked from her fringe thanks to Yuusuke's chin on top of her head. He had his arms around her, smirking along with his sister, seeming to share a private joke. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Alyssa and this Yuusuke were close. Much closer than he had been with Regulus.

His throat clogged up and moisture appeared in his sunken eyes, "Thank you," he choked.

Yuusuke understood and smiled. Sirius retracted his earlier assumption about the boy, there was nothing menacing about him, he was warm, compassionate and gentle. Yuusuke tugged him up and Sirius allowed himself to be picked up, leaning on Yuusuke.

"We only have an hour before the sleeping draught on the prisoners' systems loses its effects," that explained why they were relaxed enough to explain things to him. "Our other partner, Hiei, is out making sure no guards come in here or find anything suspicious. So, tell me Mr. Black, how fast and how far do you think you can go?"

Sirius felt that, after everything they did for him and the honest explanations, he owed them the truth, "Honestly? I can float, doggy paddle, and maybe crawl. That's about it."

"Yuusuke," and Sirius was presented with Yuusuke's back in front of him. "Don't worry, Yuusuke's more than strong enough to carry you."

"But—"

"It's either that or the princess style," the redhead smiled, "I believe it's more commonly known as bridal style?"

Piggy-back it was. To Sirius' shock and personal dismay, Yuusuke stood up as though he wasn't carrying a grown man on his back. An emaciated grown man, but a grown man nonetheless.

The woman, who he later learned was called Michiko, joined them and destroyed any Dementors that came their way with her guns.

Turning to the redhead, Kurama, Sirius just had to ask, "How did you get the inmates to drink the sleeping draughts?"

"We've spent weeks watching where what the guards called food was processed and sent. A bit too long, but we had to make sure only your food wasn't laced with the draught. Of course, the guards and any visitors are all unconscious by now," Kurama smiled.

"Your friend Hiei?"

"Yes, we were planning on drugging the guards as well, but we decided that telepathically induced dreams and memory loss would help us cover our tracks better."

Michiko snorted as she shot another Dementor, "Of course, fire-baby kicked up a fuss about coming."

"That's only because he wanted to stay close to Aiji incase something happened," Kurama placated.

"Aiji? You mean Alyssa? Where is she that she needs protection!" Sirius salivated at the thought of any news on his goddaughter.

"She's at Hogwarts," Kurama told him, "Yuusuke would have felt better had she gone to Tennyo or any of the other magical schools in Japan, but Aiji decided to honor her parents' memories by going to Scotland."

Yuusuke said something that caused Kurama and Michiko to laugh, "Not overprotective my hot ass!" Michiko chuckled.

"Yuusuke, you all but begged Hiei to shadow Aiji while at Hogwarts, what does that tell you?" Kurama smirked at him.

Yuusuke was a great elder brother, Sirius decided. Of course Alyssa had to be protected! Hogwarts wasn't impenetrable, fuck it was one of the hot spots for Junior Death Eaters. What if one of them tried to attack Alyssa—

Kurama interrupted Sirius' inner tirade with his chuckles, "I can already tell you two are going to get along just fine."

Sirius ignored that as they all… jumped out a window!?! Grey eyes shuttered and he clung to Yuusuke with a silent scream stuck in his throat.

Sirius clenched his eyes and waited for death. And waited, waited, waited… "You can open your eyes now, fool."

He did and did a double take. A short, muscled, bare-chested boy with spiky hair and red eyes scowled at him with his arms crossed. Hiei, then. Sirius looked down and saw… blue feathers!?

Fresh air filled his lungs for the first time in a decade. He was free, Sirius felt the bubbling of hysterical laughter in his abused throat. Free.

Sliding down from Yuusuke's back and sitting on the feathered back of the large bird carrying all five of them, Sirius just closed his eyes and relished the moment.

'The only thing that can make this perfect is… Alyssa,' Sirius smiled, for once at peace.

"When can I meet her?"

"She'll be coming home for the Christmas holidays," Kurama stressed 'home,' making sure Sirius got the message.

"Is she happy?" at this point, that was all Sirius could really ask for. Alyssa, Aiji, whatever she called herself, so long as she was happy, Sirius was satisfied.

Michiko decided to break the comfortable atmosphere, "There are some things pertaining to the kiddo that you should know. Wanna know now or at Japan?"

"Now, if you don't mind," Sirius forced himself to remain comfortable.

It was a good thing he was sitting down, because the things he learned about Voldemort, the Horcruxes, and the Reikai (what little surface and cover-up information they could give him) finally made Sirius give into his body's demands and passed out.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"S-s-s-she just s-s-said that I-I was f-f-f-f-f-fat!" Sally-Anne conjured up some very convincing (honesty level: zero) tears. "S-s-s-so I-I started r-r-run-n-n-ning e-e-every m-m-morning, t-t-to lose weight!" she bawled into her hands.

Poppy Pomfrey's hands twitched with the urge to throttle a certain Parkinson heiress. And whoever went and started the insipid fad that being overweight was a bad thing, hell, she'd rather someone was overweight than under.

Waiting at the wings, Daphne, Lythiel, Aiji, and Kazutoshi stared in awe as Sally-Anne masterfully tugged at heartstrings many students would bet their Gringotts vaults that didn't exist.

"Now look here, Miss Perks," Pomfrey said with uncharacteristic gentleness. "If you did gain some pounds, or even if you did become overweight, there would be nothing wrong with it. Why, girls are much more beautiful when they have meat on them than when they are nothing but walking sticks. Extreme thinness goes against the nature of a woman's physiology. We have curves, round buttocks, full breasts, and wide hips. Do you see any anorexic girl, who hasn't had any muggle surgeries or magical alterations done, who has that? No. An anorexic can only be an anorexic and is, therefore, useless to life and society as a whole. Do you know why? Because their bodies cannot function without fuel, i.e. food, so they just waste away while looking like a walking skeleton. Some even hate their own breasts because they claim it makes them look fat, of all things! So you see, there is no need to jog at the early hours just to burn some calories. Especially not if you insist on using the moving staircases for exercise!"

"But I'm not an anorexic," Sally-Anne sniffled while inwardly scoffing at the thought of giving up food. "I just want to lose these stupid pounds!"

"You say that now, child," Pomfrey patted her arm, "But then you'll start dieting and eating only vegetables, then you'll be eating smaller and smaller portions, until you'll decide to stop eating altogether. Trust me, I've seen that song and dance all too tragically often."

Sally-Anne shifted her eyes downwards, "You're not going to tell anyone, are you?"

"Only if you promise me, and I'll have Misses Greengrass, Moon, and Urameshi verify it, that you will not even think about dieting," Pomfrey flashed her a stern glance. "You're a beautiful girl and you'll grow up to be a beautiful woman, don't ruin that by following the stupid media's idea of what a woman should be. Believe me, they wouldn't know a thing about health or real beauty if it bit them in the arse, pardon my language."

"I don't want to diet," Sally-Anne was aghast at the thought of going back to that, "I started jogging and running up and down the moving stairs to avoid that!"

"Well, it's good to exercise, but don't overdo it," Pomfrey fully healed Sally-Anne's right ankle after setting the bone to its proper place, moving to her fractured ribs, "You can jog around the corridors or the Pitch, but stay away from the stairs, alright? Next time, you won't be so lucky to escape a fall from them with only fractured ribs, a broken ankle, bruised back, a broken jaw, a fractured leg, and scratches."

Sally-Anne nodded with a (totally fake) demure look on her face. She was going to take the day off, hell, for the next week she was taking a training sabbatical.

Pomfrey gestured to the bruised Lythiel and Daphne, "And what happened to you two?"

"Lythiel came on a sympathy jog with us and I've been trying to get into shape for next year," Daphne noted Pomfrey's lips tightening at the allusion to Quidditch, "We saw Sal about to fall so we went to grab her, but Ai grabbed us and pulled us back with enough force to pull us out of the stairs. We fell down on the ground floor, luckily for us we were ascending the stairs instead of descending, and we got a bit banged up."

"Miss Perks was halfway up the stairs before they started changing directions, right?" Pomfrey prompted.

"Yeah, she went up ahead of us, so we were only beginning to ascend the stairs when they moved," Lythiel said.

"I see," Pomfrey frowned, "While what you did was potentially dangerous, Miss Urameshi, I can understand how the panic of the moment could have induced such a reaction. It did get them out of harm's way, but don't try that again, alright?"

Aiji nodded, then scowled when Kazutoshi ruffled her head, "Aw, go easy on her Pomfrey-sensei, she really did mean well. At least she had the sense to get some help, and who better to help a distressed damsel than me?"

"Who are you calling a damsel in distress!?" the four girls snarled at the feminine insult, archetype, and stereotype. That was the worst sort of woman any female could ever be.

"True, that," Pomfrey finished healing the girls, "For today and next week, I want you girls to take it easy. No exercise, understand?"

They grumbled affirmative.

When they left the infirmary, all three of the girls fully healed, they all made a quasi-circle around Aiji and Kazutoshi.

"So, that's one down six to go," Aiji didn't know if she should laugh or knock herself over the head for not noticing that she had destroyed a Horcrux before Kazutoshi pointed it out.

"I still can't believe it," Daphne mumbled.

"What? That he wasn't fanatical or insane enough to do that to his soul?" Lythiel asked in astonishment, "I certainly can."

"You'd better," Sally-Anne said, shaking her head, "That bastard's on the wrong, very sick side of insane. I mean, he used the founder's artifacts for Morrigan's sake!"

"I still can't believe I told you lot," Kazutoshi smiled all the same, "I thought these kinds of misunderstandings only happened in manga."

"Feh, not like it matters, with the Oath none of us can say a word about it to those who don't know," Sally-Anne said. She still couldn't grasp the thought that there was such a thing as the afterlife and that it was at the hands of either a temperamental giant or an immature toddler. 'I'm doomed.'

"Hence why I'm not at all worried," Kazutoshi grinned.

"By the way, Ly," Aiji said, "You were great back there! Even if you can't channel reiki yet you still make a hell of a fighter," she playfully punched her arm.

Lythiel blushed, "You think so?"

"Yeah! It's not surprising with how dedicated you are, I'll bet the old hag will want ta train you," Aiji grinned.

Daphne wrapped her arms around Lythiel, eyes shinning with pride, "But of course, any master should be honored to train our little Lythiel. Haa~ it brings mama tears of joy just thinking about it!"

"If you're the mom, who's the dad?" Sally-Anne grinned, "Seriously, though, you've got one mean kick, Ly. Remind me to never piss you off or get possessed and have the idiot spirit piss you off!"

All was forgiven and forgotten. Especially since even Sally-Anne could joke about it. Although, that could be attributed to the fact that Voldemort didn't force her to do irreparable damage. That and Sally-Anne wasn't the type to blame herself for another's, even if was her body it was still the _spirit's_ fault dammit, fuck-ups, screw ups, sins, or whatever anyone wants to call it.

"Speaking of which," Kazutoshi said, "I'll have to get the circlet back to Reikai."

"WHAT!?!?!" Sally-Anne and Aiji shrieked.

"What?" Kazutoshi raised an eyebrow, "Even if his soul was successfully extracted and destroyed, protocol still demands I hand this over."

"B-b-b-b-b-but t-t-t-that is a FOUNDER'S ARTIFACT!" Sally-Anne sputtered, "Do you have any idea _how much_ money we could win!?!?"

"Early retirement, life of luxury, no more worrying about the bills, don't have to get a job, don't have to worry about university fees…" Aiji whimpered.

"Um, girls, I really hate to burst your bubbles," 'Especially when you're both looking so psychotic,' Kazutoshi sweatdropped, "But, even if you guys could keep it, you can't start selling it to Museums or the highest bidder, _he_ would be alerted about our little project if you did."

Luckily, the corridor Kazutoshi lead them on only had empty landscapes at this early hour. For if there were any paintings, they would be greeted to the sight of Sally-Anne bawling for real, and consequently drowning everyone with her tears, and Aiji figuratively turning to stone and cracking along with her dreams of wealth.

Kazutoshi sweatdropped.

Daphne sweatdropped.

Lythiel sweatdropped.

And the three floated on Sally-Anne's over-exaggerated pool of tears.

"Oh, there, there," Daphne crooned at them, "I'm sure that once this whole thing blows over, you two can split the artifacts and gain the money."

"THAT'LL BE YEARS FROM NOW!" Sally-Anne and Aiji howled.

"Who knows?" Lythiel tried to placate them, "Maybe whatever's at the third floor is worth more the than the tiara."

Suddenly Sally-Anne and Aiji were surrounded by their dark blue and bright green very competitive, combat auras. Their eyes shined with an unholy light as fanatic smiles etched on their, all of a sudden, creepy faces.

"Well then, WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR!!!" Sally-Anne and Aiji insisted on abusing their Caps Lock privileges. They left nothing but dust in their wake as they both ran towards the third floor.

"Hey! You can't have an adventure without meeeeeeeeee!" Daphne followed at high speed.

Lythiel shrugged at the only boy, "Meh, why not? I've already survived a life or death experience, can't get any worse than that."

"Feeling adventurous Moon-chan?" Kazutoshi smirked.

"Hardly," she deadpanned, "This is a great way to test my abilities. I know that I am light years away from Aiji's level, but every single step I take, every kick, every punch, every fight is a test of my endurance! A test to see if I am indeed worthy of succeeding!" Her determined purple combat aura surrounded her as she sped past Kazutoshi.

'It took six years,' Kazutoshi grinned like a loon, 'but finally there's some action around here!'

Kazutoshi took off after them. After all, what kind of upperclassman would he be if he didn't at least chaperone the girls to peril?

~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!$^&*()~!#$%^&*()~!#$%&*()~!#$%^*()~!#$%^*()~!#$%&()

What? I did categorize this as humor you know ^_^(). Besides, Aiji is reckless like her brother. Not to mention that the girls just saw their friend destroy one of the darkest of enchantments without necessarily destroying the artifact or the host. If that doesn't make them feel perfectly safe around their very powerful friend, I don't know what will. And you know, after a life or death experience, people don't react like they usually would. That, and it made great comic relief ^_^(). If I were an Daff, Ly, or Sal's position, I'd be more inclined to feel sorry for whatever's guarding the third floor for facing against Aiji. Hehe, and Kazutoshi is bored from years of spying and nothing happening, I'm pretty sure he's dieing to use his skills.

Oh. Yeah, Yuusuke can understand English but he can't speak it. The Japanese was there because it was told in Sirius' p.o.v. and since he doesn't understand a word of it, I figured an actual Japanese sentence would help the reader to further get into Siri's shoes. Did I make Yuu-chan to OOC? I mean, usually he'd have a sarcastic comment or something ready to dispell a tense atmosphere, but since he has a language barrier, he can't do that. Also, I think that his body and sometimes facial expressions betray that he cares, despite what comes out of his mouth. Not to mention that he got a glimpse at the Hell that is Azkaban, so I think that his more compassionat side would obviously come out in here, especially since he can't fool anyone with his usual flippant comments. Sooooo, tell me what you lot think about it. I'm more than open to criticism or debates about anything! Ciao!


	9. Thievery, guilt, and the invitation

Here's the new instal of Aiji! Wow, one more chapter and I'll be hitting the double-digits. Hehe... I hope everyone likes this new chapter.

Um, I'm having the girls assert themselves more in this chapter than before. Let me know how you guys think about that. Personally, I like how my girls are developping into a team. And Kazutoshi is hilarious in his own way.

Yuusuke: That's nice. I'm glad Aiji's growing into herself and all. But when the Hell am I gonna finally screw fox-boy?!

Oi, Yuusuke, what are you doing with that reigun... no, no, don't do that!

Ahem, I'll get to the Kurama/Yuusuke development soon. Hopefully.

Oh, just read the damn thing! (wink)

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Three large muzzles with far too sharp teeth. Huge paws with black claws sticking out. Thick mud-colored fur bristled. And worst of all, no collar.

Sally-Anne loved dogs, her cherished Afador (1) back at her home was testament of that. However, even this dog-lover knew better than to approach an attack dog when it felt threatened, particularly if it was of the Cerberus breed.

Just as she was inching to the door, slowly so as to not startle the canine, she heard Aiji and Daphne squeal, "It's soooo cute!!"

Aiji was walking confidently towards the cerberus, Daphne only three steps behind her. Sally-Anne slapped Lythiel's mouth shut when the blonde was about to shout after them and gave Kazutoshi a glare. The best way to make the dog feel even more threatened was to scream. Nope, what they wanted was for the dog to relax.

"Aren't you good boy," Aiji cooed. 'Wait… cooed?' Sally-Anne, Lythiel, and Kazutoshi blinked, 'Aiji can coo?'

The cerberus snarled a bit when Aiji came within two feet from it. Surprising everyone, Aiji just looked at the middle head in the eye. 'Oh, Hell no,' Sally-Anne mentally groaned, 'You do not look a dog, or any animal for that matter, in the eyes. That's challenging them!'

"Sit, boy," Aiji enunciated clearly. The cerberus growled, but it wasn't as aggressive as it was a few seconds ago.

Lythiel and Kazutoshi were about to move until Sally-Anne shook her head. "She's establishing herself as the Alpha," Daphne murmured from a safe distance.

The three heads closed in on Aiji, but she stood her ground. She lifted her wrist to the closest muzzle, intending for the canine to sniff it. Perhaps it was the confidence in her, or maybe there wasn't an air of desperation or hurry like in that man with the purple-furred head, but the cerberus sniffed the proffered wrist with its left head.

Seeing the act of obedience, Aiji lifted her other hand, slow enough that the dog saw its ascension, and started to pet the left head with a seldom used gentleness.

At her friends' (and enabler) flummoxed expressions, Aiji laughed, "This ain't an attack dog. Trust me, after dealing with those in the Makai, I'd recognize one in a heartbeat."

"B-b-b-but Aiji!" Lythiel chocked out, "It's a bleedin' cerberus! They aren't depicted in muggle myths as the guardians of the Underworld for nothing!"

"And Dobermans were originally bred to be attack dogs," Sally-Anne said, catching on to what Aiji was saying, "However, that doesn't mean that they can't be domesticated. This is the equivalent of putting a domesticated Doberman in the position of a guard dog and using the breeds' reputation to scare away everyone else."

"Or in certain cases, cause the dog to fight back," Kazutoshi said, "I mean, think about it. Dogs don't understand human speech unless if they're trained, but they are empathetic enough to understand what humans are feeling. Therefore, if someone runs away from it, the dog, even if it is a domestic one, will become suspicious and attack. If the humans attack it, then of course it will fight back. Ingenious."

"Now who could've mistaken this ickle baby for a nasty attacker," Daphne crooned as she also lifted her wirst and caressed the back of the middle head's ears, "See? It's so tame!"

Now that the three heads weren't snarling and threatening to eat them for breakfast, Sally-Anne did have to admit that the cerberus was adorable. Her inner dog-lover squealed when she repeated the same process as her friends and the right head began to nuzzle her free hand.

Soon enough, the cerberus was nuzzling and licking the girls' faces. Kazutoshi could only shake his head and mentally remind himself to put this memory in a pensieve. He'd laugh for an hour then, when he wasn't so shocked. Lythiel was inching towards a wooden trapdoor near the cerberus' paw. Obviously, she was the only one that kept the main objective in the front of her mind.

"Oi, Ly!" Aiji called out, "C'mere a sec, and say hello to Pochi!"

Lythiel looked like she had been slapped with a bouquet of daisies, "Pochi?" she hated that her voice squeaked.

"It's the most common name for a dog in Japan," Kazutoshi snorted, laughter leaking out. He was straining with the effort not to roll around the room in laughter… really, who names a cerberus Pochi?

Lythiel was about to object but Daphne put her face next to the middle head's and pouted, "What, don't you want to pet Shayla? She'll get very sad if you reject her."

Shayla? Kazutoshi trembled from the suppressed laughter after he took a peek between the cerberus' hind legs. 'Poor thing, undermined and emasculated all in one go.'

Sally-Anne made kissing noises and had the right head licking her face, "Aw, you're sweet, aren't you Chablis?"

"Chablis?" Kazutoshi snickered, "Like the wine?"

"No, like the region in Burgundy, France, you ignoramus," Sally-Anne didn't take her eyes off of 'Chablis,' "Despite its associations, Chablis is a nice sounding name. Isn't it, sweetie?" she got dog-kissed in return.

Just like that, the tiny, itsy, bitsy insignificant straw broke the camel's back. Kazutoshi howled and clutched his stomach as tears fell down his cheeks. His knees buckled and he fell to the floor, his right hand started beating it.

Lythiel sighed, 'It's hard being the only sane one.' Nevertheless, she indulged, as usual, Daphne's request. Once she started scratching behind 'Shayla's' ears, she found herself agreeing with her friends. The cerberus was too cute for words, especially when its tongue lagged out and it looked at them with puppy eyes.

"Um, not to destroy this Hallmark moment," Kazutoshi managed to say with a quasi-straight face, "but what about whatever Pochi, Shayla and Chablis were guarding?"

The three heads seemed to almost regain their previous hostility… but the rubbing felt soooo good. Oh yes, that nice Alpha female knew just how to stroke the ears. The brown furred one was far too affectionate to be a threat. The little one was a bit stern but kind. And the bigger yellow furred one couldn't be a danger what with how attentive and loving she was.

Daphne began to hum a bit, it was off-key and the song was unrecognizable from the original, but it did its job. Not only did it calm the cerberus, but each of the heads started drooping, almost like they were going to fall asleep. "Alright, who knows how to sing or play an instrument?" Lythiel asked.

"Fast paced or slow?" Aiji asked.

"Slow just incase," Sally-Anne said, "We want them to sleep, not dance."

"Damn," Kazutoshi grinned as he opened the trapdoor, "Guess I can't do _Orgasm_."

Sally-Anne, Lythiel, and Daphne stilled. Aiji cocked her head, "Huh, never thought you'd be the type to listen to visual-kei."

"Eh, I get that a lot," he shrugged, "But what's not to like about X Japan."

"Always was partial to fast paced music myself," Aiji nodded, "But it's not like Pochi here can appreciate it now, we need the whole band for him to experience a proper metal song."

"There's always _Rose of Pain_, the capella version is pretty slow at times, at least compared to the other X Japan songs," Kazutoshi said while gently ruffling the fur on top of 'Pochi's' head.

"Nah, it's mostly instrumental, so it won't do," Aiji shook her head.

"Aiji, Kazutoshi," Sally-Anne smiled a little too sweetly, "Shut up and sing, or hum if you prefer!"

Aiji just started to hum the first thing that came to her mind… which happened to be _Summertime_ from the anime "Dirty Pair." It was lower keyed, because she wasn't even attempting to sing out the high notes, and kept the upbeat rhythm. Despite the fact that Aiji was off-key on many occasions, the cerberus seemed to appreciate the effort. Daphne joined in, despite not knowing the song, by humming the beat, incorrectly at that.

'Maybe it would have been kinder for Chablis if I had sung the Marseillaise,' Sally-Anne sweatdropped.

Kazutoshi refrained from teasing the girls about their lack of musical talents. For some odd reason, the cerberus seemed to value the garbled sounds the girls were making. Yep, no matter its outward appearance, that was one sweet and tolerant dog.

The cerberus let out three simultaneous yawns. Softly nudging the girls away, it curled around itself and rested all three heads on top of his paws.

"Aw," Sally-Anne felt a string of homesickness. She wondered when she could go home and play with her little Sultan… well, he wasn't little anymore, but the Afador would always be little to her since she'd always remember how tiny he was when she first got him as a puppy.

Kazutoshi signaled the girls towards the trap door. Sally-Anne took out her wand and sent a small ball of light downwards. It seemed like a big fall until there was something dark green that recoiled from the light. "Anyone know any cushioning charms?" Sally-Anne asked.

Lythiel took Sally-Anne's wand arm and performed the movements until she was certain that Sally-Anne could repeat it without help. "Since we don't know what's down there," Lythiel said, "We'll have to cushion _ourselves _instead of the place where we will fall. The incantation is _Chlustog_ and be sure to point where you want there to be cushions."

Kazutoshi whistled, "Impressive, not that many people bother with Welsh spells since we have more than enough Latin ones. If I recall, we didn't learn about cushioning spells until at least second year."

"There was no Latin version for cushioning a person's body," Lythiel shrugged, "The only Latin spells I could find were about cushioning the place where the body would fall, the place where someone would sit on… it didn't seem practical to leave it at that since one can never know when the body needs protection without knowing where one will land, so I just searched for a spell that would do it and I found that one."

He nodded in understanding, pointed his wand at Sally-Anne's lower body and "_Chlustog_."

She jumped and glared, "_Chlustog!_"

Kazutoshi, much to her chagrin, didn't so much as twitch, "Not the first time I had that cast on me, love."

"I take it that it was mandatory to learn that spell?" Lythiel tried to keep herself from reacting to Sally-Anne's cushioning charm. She still jumped a bit, despite the warning.

"I'm afraid that not all of us are superhuman like the Urameshi gang," Kazutoshi smirked, "Or is it stubborn to the point of stupidity?"

Aiji glared and stopped singing for a bit to send him the middle finger. She only twitched at Sally-Anne's spell and resumed singing when Daphne yelped at the spell.

"I'll go first, since I am the eldest and the one responsible," Kazutoshi met Aiji's glare with a stony glance of his own. Brave man. "Urameshi and Greengrass-kun should go last since their… concert is keeping the guard asleep."

/I hope you stub your toe/ Aiji sang.

Kazutoshi grinned then made himself as thin as possible and fell down the trapdoor. He fell, and fell, and fell, and fell, and he was getting a bit annoyed at the lack of landing until…

SQUASH

Luckily whatever he fell on was squishy and soft, so the impact to his back was non-existent thanks to experience. Feeling the texture, he could tell that it was a plant of some sort, 'Great, Herbology, one of my _favorite_ subjects.'

"Put the cushioning charm on your backs as well!" he yelled to the top. He moved a bit and a few moments later heard a familiar squash nearby. He couldn't see in the darkness but he noticed the thick braid, Lythiel then.

A few minutes later, Sally-Anne, then Daphne, and then Aiji joined the circus without pause. By that time Kazutoshi and Lythiel were getting nervous from the plant's limbs starting to squeeze them. "Sal, light now!" Lythiel barked out, trying to keep her body as relaxed as possible.

"_Lumos_," the small light was enough to make some of the plant recoil.

"It's…" Daphne started.

"Devil's Snare!" Lythiel shouted.

"What?!" Aiji started to struggle.

"Aiji, don't!" Daphne yelled, "If you struggle it will kill you faster!"

"Oh that's reassuring!" Aiji grabbed the plant that tried to choke her and squeezed back.

"We need light!" Lythiel cried, "Lots of it! Devil's Snare thrives on dark and damp climates, if we fill this place with light…"

"_Lumos Solem!_" Sally-Anne didn't wait for Lythiel to finish. As soon as the artificial solar light hit the room, the plant withdrew from its prey, giving the girls and Kazutoshi a chance to run towards the ledge. Kazutoshi added his own reiki to the light, further blinding the room and weakening the plant. They rushed to the door and didn't look back as they entered the room.

Metal birds, lots of them. Aside from the broom in the middle of the room, that was all that filled the Spartan space. With a weary eye on their surroundings, they reached the door, the very locked door.

Sally-Anne took a second look at the birds and noticed that they weren't birds at all, they were winged keys. "They're keys," she pointed at them, "And we're supposed to get the one that matches the lock."

"Should be an old fashioned one, by the look of the lock," Kazutoshi inclined his head.

"Ai and I are pretty good flyers," Daphne said, "I'll take the broom first, then if I fail, Ai can—"

Aiji spun once and side-kicked the door open, its hinges falling off while the locked part stubbornly held on to the wall.

"…or we can do that," Daphne finished.

Aiji entered the next room, followed by a snickering Kazutoshi. The girls followed and Daphne put the door back in its place, "Think no one will notice?"

Snorts of amusement met Daphne's hopeful question.

Or maybe it was a reaction to the giant chess pieces on the equally mammoth-sized board.

Aiji continued walking to the center of the board game without preamble. Kazutoshi followed at a more wary pace. He grabbed Aiji and tugged her back off the board when the white chess pieces unsheathed their marble weapons.

"Okay so the overgrown puppy must be Hagrid's, since he's the one with the dangerous pet fixation," Kazutoshi grinned, "The Devil's Snare was Sprout's, the keys must have been Flitwick's, and this probably belongs to the old Battle Axe."

"Wouldn't that depict Snape better?" Sally-Anne snarked.

"Nah, he's more of Sergeant bitter about missing a promotion than a Battle Axe," Aiji smirked.

"So… who's good at chess?" Daphne tentatively asked.

"Isn't there any way we can change this into a go or shogi game?" Kazutoshi asked no one in particular.

"Alright," Lythiel said, "It only looks like we're screwed. Where there's a will there's a way, I'm sure we can find a way around this."

"It's okay, I've been itchin' for a fight," Aiji rubbed her hand to her fist.

Daphne twirled her wand, "I'm sure a few earth-based spells will do nicely."

Kazutoshi whacked the two girls on the back of their heads, dispelling the bloodlust they were emitting. "We don't want the profs to know something's wrong, kiddos. And a room full of destroyed giant chess pieces will be like wearing a white t-shirt with a bull's eye on it."

"Then why didn't you stop me from kicking the door down?" Aiji bit out.

"Because that's easily fixed and no one will notice it if they don't really pay attention," Kazutoshi waved it off.

"So… what do you propose?" Sally-Anne was a bit peeved.

"Simple, I've told you lot that I'm in the exorcising business, right? Well, what's truly fascinating about these pieces is that they are sentient. Even though McGonagall is not here, the white pieces are designed to move with the intent to beat the black pieces in the game. Meanwhile, the black pieces are designed to take orders from the outside player…"

"Kind of like a computer chess game," Sally-Anne concluded.

"Yes, so it's all a matter of shutting off the power controlling the white pieces. In other words, make them _un_-sentient," Kazutoshi finished with aplomb.

"And how are you going to do that? Somehow, I doubt that a _Finite Incantatem _will suffice," Sally-Anne drawled.

"You do realize that getting rid of Golems falls under my job description?" he boasted, "We take care of Golems by using the same procedure. And after all the Hell that Beniha chick had put me through in the Saitama incident, I'd hope that this should be cake."

"That was you," Aiji guffawed, "You're the one that—"

"Yes," he bit out, "I was the one that required a lot of clean up and memory whipping."

"They were that tough?" Aiji smirked.

"No, but it's rather hard to make three Golems un-sentient when five others are trying to kill you," Kazutoshi growled.

"Why didn't you just destroy the Golems?" Aiji was genuinely curious.

"So, you're saying that the boss wouldn't blink if say… the statue of Saigo Takamori was made into a Golem and you turned it into itty bitty pieces?" Kazutoshi deadpanned.

"He'd pitch a hissy fit," Aiji conceded.

Kazutoshi just grumbled while he came closer to the chess pieces. He took out many ofuda in each hand and closed his eyes, chanting.

"Get ready to run," Aiji said. She grabbed Sally-Anne's hand, who grabbed Daphne's who grabbed Lythiel's.

In what seemed like a half-hour, but really, was only three minutes, Kazutoshi jumped into the air and threw his ofuda at the white pieces, "Iyoku Shuushi!"

The ofuda reached every single chess piece's forehead. Just as the pieces were about to unsheathe their weapons at the presence of an intruder, they stilled, frozen like the statues they were.

He landed in the middle of the board and flicked his short black hair back, "Come on, they're gonna lose sentience for about ten minutes."

The girls ran after him to the door behind the white pieces.

They opened the door and were met with a… far too disturbingly familiar smell.

"What is it with Quirell and trolls!" Aiji groaned.

The troll came charging at them, club raised, when, "_Incarcerous!_" due to the aim, the ropes tied its left hand to the left leg, unbalancing the troll.

Aiji jumped up to the ceiling, used the wall to propel herself downwards like the last troll fight, and used the momentum to stomp on the troll's chest. The troll fell backwards and, like its predecessor, caused a mini-earthquake at the fall.

Sally-Anne, with the tip of her oak wand sparkling with menacing lights, pointed at the troll, "And stay down or I'll do worse than tie you up!"

'I'm this close to finding the hidden treasure and no one, especially not an idiotic troll, is going to stop me!' her eyes burned with a determined light. Her combat aura regained its spark.

With meek eyes, the troll wisely discarded its weapon and relaxed on the ground.

"Wow," Lythiel whistled, "Nice wand-work back there, Sal."

"Thanks," she smiled.

Aiji clapped her hand on the brunette's shoulder in congratulations and moved to the next door.

They all felt a burning sensation, as though fire was kissing their skin and time was moving faster. They stopped before a small room, if it could be called that, with a table that contained seven differently shaped bottles standing in line with a piece of parchment next to them.

Lythiel and Sally-Anne took up the parchment and began to read it until Sally-Anne huffed, "Potions! I think I'll sit this one out."

"But that's the thing Sal," Lythiel tried to placate her friend, "It's not a Potions test, it's a logic test. Even an idiot at Potions can figure this out if they figure out the puzzle."

"Ly, I've got a mental block when it comes to anything and everything scientific," Sally-Anne reiterated, "Ask Daff for help."

"Sal," Daphne started, "You're better at logic puzzles than I am…"

"And so is Ly," Sally-Anne nodded her head to the midget of the group.

Daphne was about to argue until Lythiel tugged her to her side. After reading the note, Daphne took two bottles, uncorked them, and brought them up to her nose for a sniff. Lythiel did the same for two others.

They did the same for the others, always placing the bottles back where they left them, and (in Lythiel's case) double checking the parchment.

"I know one thing for sure," Daphne said, "These three," she pointed at them, "are only mead. And this one," she pointed to another one, "is most definitely poison."

"Got it!" Lythiel crowed, "This tiny one will take us forward and this round one will take us back!"

The euphoria didn't last long before the words sank in.

"That's… quite the small dosage," Sally-Anne said.

"Obviously if there is a group of thieves, they'd be stuck down here or some would have to go back," Kazutoshi pinched his nose.

"I may know jack shit about Potions, but even I can tell that's not going to be enough for all of us," Aiji said, "Even if some of us choose to go back."

They were stuck. Well shit.

Okay, now the ever missed and once misused Stone Silence's service is very much appreciated for this odd occasion.

"_Aguamenti!_" Sally-Anne's water spell only doused some tiny flames before the purple fire flared a bit more than before. "Didn't think so," she sighed.

"Worth a try," Lythiel said.

"_Aqua Orbis!_" Daphne tried to send the water ball to the center, to see if it could disperse and douse the flames, only for it vaporize within seconds.

"Hm," Sally-Anne licked her lips, "_Terra Orbis!_" The earth ball sailed at the center and lasted a few seconds longer than the water one before it was incinerated.

"Wait," Lythiel snapped her fingers, "Try sending a fireball, see what happens."

Daphne nodded, "_Incendia Orbis!_" the fireball followed the wake of her sisters. It lasted a bit longer before it was consumed by the purple flames.

"Well, we can't send anything wind-related since it'll just strengthen the fire," Sally-Anne dryly said.

Kazutoshi and Aiji finished having their quiet conversation, he went up to the rest of the girls while saying, "Let me try first and then you can have a go." Aiji only smirked, as if knowing that Kazutoshi would fail.

Kazutoshi pointed his own wand at the fire, warned the girls to step back, and "_Unda Extraho!_"

Jets of water came out of his wand before the front took a life of its own. It coiled and wriggled like a snake, but the face reminded the girls of a dragon. The water attacked the fire head on, clawing for every inch of the passage. Kazutoshi held his wand with both hands and focused on every inch of victory. The water dragon and the purple fire dueled, sometimes one gaining an inch over the other, but he could feel that fire wasn't budging after a certain point, almost as if it was glued to the floor.

/Shit,/ Kazutoshi was taking slow backward steps, "Get back and put up a shield, I think the fire's gonna bounce back!"

The girls rushed back to the blue fire opposite of the purple one. Daphne was looking at the fire in front of her like a deer caught in headlights, clutching the back of Lythiel's shirt. Lythiel was likewise clutching Daphne's hand, and turned to the only one that had any aptitude for non-offensive spells, "A water shield, make it a water shield!"

Sally-Anne snapped out of her fear. Her wand movements were exaggerated, almost as though she was doing it for the first time, but really, she was too scared of making a mistake, "_Unda Contego!_"

Water sprung from her wand and circled the girls in a protective orb. They all sighed in relief, glad to have something between them and the fire, until… "What about sempai!?" Aiji cried, now worried.

He was straining, no doubt the fire would overcome him soon and he'd receive the full blast.

"A water shield won't be enough at that close distance," Lythiel trembled, "It'd only douse him while the fire explodes back."

"What about an earth shield? Or better yet, a mud shield!" Sally-Anne grasped at straws, "Since it's made out of two elements, maybe it can protect him more."

"You can't bloody well cast it!" Lythiel roared, "If you do, the water shield will break off!"

"How do you make an earth shield?" Aiji asked, deathly serious.

"What?"

"Sal's holding up the water shield, right? Daff's next to useless with non-offensive spells and you don't have enough power. I'm the only choice left."

"She's got a point," Daphne finally got out of her petrified state, "There's enough space on the floor that can let Ai's spell travel to Shinmei. What's the worst that can happen at this point?"

Lythiel didn't hesitate. She grabbed Aiji's arm and guided it through the movements slowly, then fast. Daphne was too busy watching the water dragon being pushed back, the fire ready to spring back upon its attacker. Sally-Anne was clutching her wand with both hands in advance, preparing for the blast. Aiji placed herself behind the girls, that way if the blast pushed everyone back to the other fire, she'd take the brunt. Bending her knees with one foot a couple of centimeters in front of the other, she pointed her holly wand at the floor. She took a deep breath, steeled herself, reached inside her magical core, and "_Limus Contego!_"

The brown light traveled down the floor, seeking its mistress' intended target. Sweat fell down Aiji's brow as she controlled her magic to make it to Kazutoshi-senpai. She pushed down her first instinct to power up the spell. She could only do that once the spell protected him, not before, otherwise the spell would stop its course and protect thin air. Once she saw the brown light beneath his feet, she dropped the dam.

Wet earth sprung up to create a circled fortress around and above Kazutoshi. Thanks to Aiji's magic, the mud quickly dried to better protect and absorb a blast. As soon as his front was covered, Kazutoshi dropped his spell.

The fire bounced back as though it was a rock on a slingshot. Kazutoshi screamed as the fire blasted at his shield, forcing it to move back with Kazutoshi in tow. Daphne shrieked even before the blast hit their shield. The flames never came near them, but the force of the blast was strong enough that the leftover wind rocked them back with sparks hitting the shield.

Aiji grunted but kept her footing when Daphne, Lythiel, and Sally-Anne almost fell on her. Sally-Anne was dazed but held strong, her shield didn't falter, thank goodness. Aiji could hear the back of the water shield evaporating as it came into contact with the blue fire behind her. Gritting her teeth, Aiji grounded herself even more and waited out the storm.

The purple flames kept burning strong, and was it Aiji's imagination, or were the flames at the front closer than before?

They waited, and waited, until it became obvious that the flames weren't going to attack again. At the girls' nods, Sally-Anne tentatively dispelled her shield. Nothing happened. The girls let out a collective sigh of relief. "We are never, ever, doing that again!" Sally-Anne snarled.

Aiji cancelled her dried and blackened shield on Kazutoshi. He was cradling the back of his neck and had his chin resting on his chest. He was curled in a way that, if he did slam to the solid shield, he wouldn't damage himself. Aside from a few bruises, he was fine.

"The Hell was THAT!?" Aiji snarled.

He peeked from his arm and surveyed the situation. As soon as he finished sighing, he launched into a curse fest that would have made Yuusuke proud.

"You mind putting that in terms we can understand," venom was spewing from Sally-Anne's mouth. He'd better have a good explanation for that near blow up, or he was dead!

"That," he pointed to the flames, "was no spell."

…

HUH!?

"How many years have you studied magic again?" Daphne smiled sweetly. The kind that you smile at your husband when he's dieing from the poison you put in his food.

"Magic theory 101," he started, "What happens when no matter how many high level water spells don't saturate a huge fire, even though a powerful wizard is putting all of their power into it?"

"My, you're modest," Sally-Anne mocked.

"Not only that," he ignored the quip, "But the fire refuses, no, can't move back past a certain point? Almost—"

"As though it were glued on," Lythiel finished with a daze, "It's a ritual. A warding ritual to keep others out. Spells are as useless to this type of magic as locating spells are to the _Fidelius_."

"FUCK!" Sally-Anne swore. Snape had just gone and screwed them sideways.

"Um," Aiji and Daphne interrupted, "can you guys explain this so the general populace can understand?"

"The _Fidelius _is basically a warding ritual one places to a place one doesn't want to be found," Lythiel dumbed it down, "Someone can live inside the house for years without anyone noticing the house was ever there, provided the Secret Keeper doesn't blab where the place is located."

"Kinda like what happened to my folks," Aiji scowled, "So you're saying that spells don't work on these ritual things?"

"Rituals, Rune Work, Arithmatic Work and Warding are some of the most undermined but exceedingly important and powerful works of magic," Kazutoshi shook his head, "It figures the old bat would know how to conduct one."

"So the Potions," Daphne frowned.

"Spells and other wand-work may be useless to rituals," Lythiel said, "Doesn't mean there aren't other ways around them."

"And since almost all wizards are completely dependant on their wands, finding a solution without them would be discombobulating," Sally-Anne nodded.

"Dammit!" Aiji clenched her fist. Her reiki and youki surrounding her, feeling the call of her wrath.

Daphne sighed, "Even if we had any ingredients to duplicate the potion, we don't even know what it is. There's no way out beside the one that Snape presents us."

"Or maybe not Snape's," Kazutoshi said.

"What do you mean?" Lythiel asked, bewildered, "This whole test has Snape written all over it!"

"True, but who does Snape take orders from?" he retorted.

"In general, who knows?" Daphne said.

"In school."

"Dumbledore," the three witches chorused.

"Exactly," he nodded, "It makes sense in an 'I won't be able to look him in the eye' kind of way."

"Care to share with the rest of the class?" Sally-Anne drawled.

"Easy, the old codger's been saying like a broken record that Voldemort," he ignored the witches' (minus Aiji) flinches, "would return. And if he did, who would the British Wizarding World look to for a savior?"

An outraged silence met his question.

"What?" Daphne breathed, a vessel almost popping.

"Why else do you think there's only one tiny bottle that for two people to take a sip would be pushing it? Actually, if Dumbledore wanted to prevent thievery down here, there wouldn't even be a way out."

"If Snape had it his way, he'd keep the thief trapped in here forever," Sally-Anne assessed.

"And we can even say that the last obstacles were meant to wear the thieves down," Daphne pointed out.

"So why is there a way out?" Lythiel mused.

"He wants to train me," Aiji growled.

The rest snapped their heads in her direction.

"That's it, isn't it? The bottles to go back or forward were meant for me and whoever I brought along. You guys were supposed to take the one going back and I was supposed to go forward and stop Quirell from taking whatever is in there," Aiji narrowed her eyes, "That's why he's letting Quirell stay here even after the Quidditch attack and his weak excuse. I mean, Hiei-nii noticed immediately that there was something wrong with baldy the first time. Who wants to bet that the old relic already knew from the get go? So, why did he let a possessed psycho into school full of kids 24/7? Simple, he wants to start toughening 'Alyssa Potter' on his own turf so I'll be alive by the end of the 'test.' Whatever doesn't hurt the previously weak 'Alyssa' will only make her stronger."

Aiji's combat aura enveloped her, pushing against anything near her body.

"Only, he made a lot of mistakes. One of them being that I'm not the 'Alyssa' he was expecting and my whole background is different thanks to some weird series of events. And in this case, he wasn't expecting so many of us to come down here or so early. Hell, he probably never expected that I'd go down here to take the treasure for myself."

Amidst her ferocious growling, Aiji didn't notice the awed, fascinated, and borderline scared looks on her companions' faces.

"U-um," Sally-Anne started but Aiji didn't hear her.

"Heh, if he wants to use me, he'll have to do better than this," she smirked with fire in her eyes, "By the time I'm done with him, Voldy Moldy won't be the only one cryin' for mama!"

"Aiji!" Daphne cut in. The dangerous wild beasts, muggle or fantastical, serving as Aiji's background dissipated.

"What!" Aiji asked.

They all pointed behind her to the blue fire. It had retreated several inches, almost as though it was scared of Aiji. Not that anyone could blame 'em, really.

Aiji noticed her green combat aura was still permeating her skin. Deciding to experiment a bit, Aiji aimed her pointer finger at a small flame and shot a small reigun. There was no more sign of it.

"Well I'll be damned," Kazutoshi whistled.

"Of course! Spiritual energy is not the same as magic," Lythiel had a goofy smile on her face, "Since this energy can be harnessed by ever muggles who have zero percent chance of acquiring magic, no wizard, especially not the ones that created many rituals since the last invented ritual was 300 years ago, took into account if spiritual energy could weaken rituals."

"Well, I wouldn't know about specialized ones like the _Fidelius_," Kazutoshi said, "But maybe Guard Rituals like these can be taken down by reiki, maybe even youki as well."

"Let's give it a shot," Aiji grinned as she pointed her loaded finger towards the purple flames.

"Hold it!" Sally-Anne halted her, "Just in case, let's give it a test run, preferably when we're all behind a shield of some sort."

"You can do another shield as good as the last one?" Kazutoshi was genuinely curious.

"No," she blushed, "I ran out of fuel after the last one. I could maybe make another one with lower power."

"Same," he said, "Maybe if be combine our magic, we can make a strong enough shield."

"Strong enough?"

"Sounded more optimistic than decent enough."

"How about instead of using a 'shield,' you use a 'wall'?" Daphne suggested.

They looked at her with question marks above them.

"Well, the way I see it, the shields literally come in front of the caster and protect them, but they need to use their magic constantly to support it," Daphne shrugged.

"Meanwhile a 'wall' is something that stays in one place and doesn't need additional magical support," Sally-Anne finished the thought.

Lythiel laughed, "Never thought this spell, of all of them, would come in handy."

"Yes, well, you also never thought you'd be stuck in a small room underneath Hogwarts between two Fire Warding Rituals," Sally-Anne bit out.

"True," Lythiel came up to Kazutoshi and Sally-Anne and, once again, taught them the arm movement. Luckily, he already knew the incantation, he just never bothered to learn a supposedly useless spell.

"Now remember, Ai," Daphne said, "As soon as you finish shooting, you get behind the wall."

"Yes, 'ka-san," Aiji grinned cheekily.

"Brat," Daphne bonked her head with a smile.

"_Limus Parietis_," Kazutoshi and Sally-Anne incanted simultaneously. Wet earth came up from the floor until it reached five feet high and six feet wide. Thanks to an additional wind spell, the mud hardened.

Everyone besides Aiji ducked to behind the wall. Aiji pointed her finger at the flames and "Reigun!"

Maybe it was because that previous experiment was enough to convince her, maybe it was because she had confidence in her own energy to protect her if she was wrong, or maybe it was just plain old arrogance, but that didn't change the fact that Aiji didn't budge from her spot.

The green reiki blasted its way past the flames, creating a clear path. Aiji grabbed a stunned Daphne, hoisted her over her shoulder and sped through the path.

"AIJI YOU IDIOT!!" the rest bellowed.

Kazutoshi cursed as he hoisted the remaining two underneath his armpits and dashed after Aiji, taking advantage of the currently non-flammable path. They raced towards the exit even faster when the purple flames came back to life and were chasing Kazutoshi.

'When we get out of here, we are soooo letting Snape have it!' was the general consensus.

Aiji rushed out of the burning room with Kazutoshi following seconds later. In his wake, the purple flames were back to their former function.

Daphne waited for a second, then smacked the back of Aiji's head, "MORON!"

Aiji resisted the urge to rub her head. Really, Daphne could hit as hard as Keiko-nee sometimes.

"Look at the bright side," Kazutoshi drawled, "At least now no one will suspect anyone made it here."

"Where is here?" Lythiel asked.

The room was dome made of gold… or what convincingly passed off as gold, they weren't too sure. Aside from some circular steps and a huge full-length mirror at the center, it was as bare as a cupboard in a newly bought house.

"Maybe it's the paranoia talkin' but doesn't anyone get the feelin' that mirror's gonna steal our souls if we get near it?" Aiji started sweating.

There was no enemy more dangerous than the one that posed as the innocent and the mundane.

Kazutoshi shuffled, "Well, it doesn't have reiki or youki, so it's only magic-based."

"Is that supposed to reassure us?" Daphne gulped.

Indeed, after all of the obstacles they had to vanquish to make it here, a simple mirror seemed almost anti-climactic. And that's what made everyone suspicious.

"Um," Sally-Anne meekly said, "this might be a detective novels induced idea but… maybe the third floor was a beard? Maybe our theory about Dumbledore was wrong and he only made it sound like the treasure was here so that ambitious idiots like Quirell would get trapped here while the real treasure was safe elsewhere?"

Why, hello there Stone Silence! Another appearance in the same chapter, fancy that!

"WHAT!?!?!?!?!?!" Aiji punched a pillar down.

"We went through Hell and back for nothing!" Daphne kicked the wall nearest her.

"Hehehe," Kazutoshi fell to his knees, "So that's how it goes, eh? Well, I'm sure Ibuki-chan from administration wouldn't mind changing Dumbledore's afterlife destination, preferably to THE DEEPEST BOWELS OF YOMI NO KUNI!!!"

Lythiel roared as she charged to the mirror, grabbing the frame and holding her free arm back for a punch to spite the old Headmaster… until she got a good look at the mirror.

Seeing Lythiel freeze in front of the mirror, everyone else came to the wrong conclusion.

"NOOOO, LY!" Daphne rushed to her, wand drawn.

Kazutoshi took out his ofuda and began chanting. Aiji had her reigun ready to fire and Sally-Anne had a levitation spell on the tip of her tongue.

"Huh?" Lythiel shook her head and saw the running idiots, "What are you all doing?" On second thought, maybe she really didn't want to know.

"LY!" Daphne glomped her, "Do you know where you are? What we're doing here? Do you know your name? More importantly, do you know my name? Are you from an alternate universe where we're not friends or we never met or you have a different past and you've been sent here to complete a mission from the gods!?"

"Daff, my love," Lythiel started patting Daphne's back like she would a terrified and dangerous animal, "You really need to cut back on the multiple dimensions novels."

"It is you!" Daphne bawled.

Kazutoshi, Aiji, and Sally-Anne stopped their attacks and sighed in exasperation. Really, this too innocent room was making everyone jittery.

"Lythiel, chérie," Sally-Anne smiled, "Mind letting us know why you stopped and SCARED US SHITLESS!"

Lythiel merely pointed at the mirror, "Take a look for yourselves."

After making sure, thoroughly, that Lythiel was indeed fine and magically unaffected, they all looked at the mirror.

"Huh? What's 'nii-chan doing here?" Aiji gaped.

"Where the fuck did all of that come from?!" Sally-Anne salivated.

"Haa~" Kazutoshi breathed.

"Oh, Lady Morrigan, I knew you haven't abandoned me," Daphne had stars in her eyes, "This is my future, isn't it?"

Lythiel was looking at the top of the mirror, "Just out of curiosity, what are you all seeing?"

They all gave her odd looks, however Kazutoshi seemed to have an idea of what she was on about, "I'll tell you all mine if you lot do the same."

Aiji went first, "I see myself _finally _beating 'nii-chan in a spar," she glanced at Kazutoshi a bit, giving off a warning glare, "'ka-san's sober and stayin' that way, I don't see her nowhere near a bottle," at his lack of reaction, she let up on the glare, "and 'nii-chan's finally shacked up with Kurama-nii, if that kiss is anything to go by."

Sally-Anne didn't make a comment, she just took up the rebound, "I'm surrounded by wealth and I'm living together with maman and dad. From the looks of the Perks Manor, we don't have to worry about the Elders or other family members since maman's there."

Daphne blushed, "Wow, you two are actually quite family oriented."

"Let me guess," Aiji drawled, "You see yourself beating up McLaggen and Smith?"

"More like they're begging for mercy, kissing my boots, and calling me Mistress," Daphne corrected, "And, what's even better, ickle Ri-Ri's finally stopped crushing on that third-rate imbecile!"

Before Kazutoshi could so much as raise and eyebrow, Sally-Anne filled in, "Ri-Ri is Daff's nickname for her little sister Asteria. The third-rate imbecile would be Lockhart."

"I kinda figured that last part," he said with a wan smile, "I see myself standing among the top Tantei and apparition hunters. Otou-sama has finally seen the light and allowed onee-sama to take over the family business. And I've also become Matsuyama Setsuko-sama's apprentice."

Lythiel nodded, almost as though she was confirming something, "When I looked in the mirror, I saw myself using magic like it was nothing, I took it for granted like everyone else… I also got a glimpse of myself using reiki and being as strong as Aiji."

Aiji was flattered as much as she felt awkward, "So… what? Does this mirror show us our futures?"

Lythiel shook her head with sad eyes, "No, not our futures. Our desires."

Sally-Anne and Kazutoshi walked to where Lythiel was standing. "Erised. 'Desire' spelt backwards," Sally-Anne whispered.

"Ah hum," Lythiel nodded, "If you read the inscriptions backwards, they say 'I show not your face but your heart's desire.' Pretty self-explanatory."

"Makes sense," Kazutoshi sighed with a despondent air, "I think your theory about this place being a beard is right, Perks-chan. I mean, Quirell or whatever operative of Voldemort's Dumbledore was suspecting would know about the treasure he's hiding. So, this place only shows the object and what they do with it, but not where to find it. Brilliant plan, actually."

"Technically, no," Daphne interjected, "I mean, it says this mirror shows our heart's desire, right? Maybe the operative would follow orders and would want to see the mission finished, but not necessarily have it as a deep desire to acquire this treasure."

"Desires aren't a fixed thing, Daff," Aiji said, "You can still keep your primary desires while having pressing priorities."

"Yeah, I'll bet that if we came here the week before OWLs, I'd see myself passing them and getting the exams over and done with," Kazutoshi grinned, "Of course, that doesn't mean that what I saw just now are discarded desires, it just means that I have other desires at the front of my mind that are not necessarily within my long-term plans."

"Never mind the technicalities, although I do have to admit they are fascinating," Lythiel interrupted, "But now that we know there isn't a treasure down here, what do we do? We'd better make up our minds fast because sooner or later our presences will be missed."

"What do you mean there is no treasure here?" Sally-Anne asked, a dark blue aura blasting from her body, "Sure, it's not what we expected but this mirror's bound to be worth thousands, wouldn't you say?"

"Actually, I'm pretty damn sure it's one of a kind," Lythiel interjected.

"EVEN BETTER!" Sally-Anne bellowed, "Call it a consolation prize, if you want. But I say we take it!"

"But Sal—"

"What? Imagine how much havoc Quirell could cause if he knew of his enemies' deepest desires! We'd be doing this school a favor by keeping him away from it!"

"But—"

"Don't tell me after the maze of doom back there, you lot want to come back empty-handed!"

"Sally, love—"

"I mean, come on! We can split the money between us now and let the mirror be properly maintained and admired at a museum. We'd be doing the people of Britain an effin' service!"

Aiji slapped her hand on Sally-Anne's mouth, "Sal, you're preaching to the choir."

Sally-Anne blinked, "Oh? Then what's the problem?"

"Did you eat a bowl of stupid? How the fuck are we supposed to steal that huge-ass mirror with no one noticing?!"

You're making quite the comeback Stone Silence!

"Shrinking charms?" Daphne asked. "We could hide it in one of our trunks till Christmas hols and one of us will take it home."

"Somehow, I'm getting the feeling that it's warded against those, knowing our rotten luck," Sally-Anne grouched.

"Well, the afterwards idea's not bad," Kazutoshi smiled, "Only question is, who'll take it?"

"Can't," Lythiel said, "Even if we ignore my lovely relationship with my parents, I'd rather stay here for the hols than spend time there."

Aiji frowned but figured this was not the place. Later though…

"I'm out too," Sally-Anne raised her hand with a scowl, "I'm only passing by the Perks Manor to meet up with dad and pack vacation clothes. We're visiting maman and she would most definitely raise an eyebrow at it. And I can't leave it at the Manor, someone else in the family would sell it and keep the money."

"Count me out," Daphne waved her arms in front of her and shook her head, "Mommy and mama would find it weird if I bring a mirror that huge home. I'm not that vain," repressed laughter and mocking 'no really!?' met her statement, "Shut up. And Ri-Ri is on the precocious stage, she'd figure out what's wrong with the mirror within days! Oh, my sweet, smart little one, I shouldn't criticize your virtues so! It's not our fault you're so very perfect and …"

The rest of the girls tuned Daphne out while Lythiel tugged at Kazutoshi's muscle shirt to get his attention, "Don't mind her. She always gets like this when talking about her sister."

"Ah," he judiciously said. What he really thought was 'There really is such a thing as a doting sibling.'

"How about you, Shinmei?" Sally-Anne interjected while giving Daphne a stern glance.

"My family may be muggle," he said, "But it wouldn't be among the most influential zaibatsu if it was filled with idiots." He paused, "On second thought, if Chinatsu-nee-sama and I could use it to see father's deepest desires and blackmail him…"

The girls then turned to Aiji.

She snorted, "No one in my family will give a damn if I steal that, but how the hell am I supposed to fit that into our apartment?"

"_Reduccio_," Sally-Anne casted. As she had expected, the spell had no effect.

"I don't suppose you know advanced miniaturizing spells?" Daphne asked Kazutoshi.

Kazutoshi tapped his lips, his eyes trailing the mirror up and down. He took out his wand and started tracing two kanji for "decrease" (herasu), one for "height" (tate), and the last one was "weight" (kagi) in the air.

The left over magic from the wand held together the strokes of the characters in front of the mirror. Kazutoshi nudged them in the middle with his wand and the characters flowed into the object and almost seemed to be absorbed by it. Just as he was beginning to grin in triumph, his magic was pushed away from the object in an almost repulsed rejection.

"…That wasn't supposed to do that, was it?" Aiji pointed at the mirror.

"Nope," he gritted his teeth.

Kazutoshi began working at an obsessive manner with other runes. Egyptian, Norse, Ancient Greek, Persian, Ancient Mandarin, Classical Arabic… Okay, now it was turning into a professional insult.

The girls watched in awe and no small amount of glee as the so-called unflappable Kazutoshi lost his cool and began cursing, red-faced, sending the rudest hand gestures he could think of towards the inanimate object.

Really, it did their egos a great service to watch someone older, more experienced, and with the reputation of forever being unruffled lose their temper.

Kazutoshi was panting, fists clenched, with his teeth bared. Just as he was going to start another series of runes… POP!

"Kazutoshi-dono! Kazutoshi-dono! Kazutoshi-dono! Dumby is coming down for check-down of treasure! You's needs to leave now!" Slinky slung his arms about with the excitability of an Energizer Bunny.

As Kazutoshi swore like a drunken sailor, the girls all gaped at the House-Elf.

"Slinky-kun," Aiji started with a too placid expression on her face, "I thought you couldn't get in to certain rooms like, say, the Room of Requirement."

"Ah, but Aiji-sama, the Come and Go Room is only magic," Slinky bobbed his head, "This room, is not and we's come often to clean up."

"Never mind that," Sally-Anne said, though she filled that information away for later, "Why did you come to warn Shinmei when you should, by all intents and purposes, be warning the Headmaster of intruders?"

Slinky seemed to shrink into himself until Kazutoshi took the time to nod his permission, "Kazutoshi-dono be Slinky's Master."

"Oh," said Lythiel, "Really? That's news."

They all turned to Kazutoshi who barked, "Never mind that! The Headmaster's coming here and if her finds us, we're gonna get shit-canned!"

"Dumbledore?" Daphne bit her lips to prevent herself from laughing.

"Yes, the Dumby is coming here!"

Aiji got a strange glint her eyes, "Say, Slinky, I thought it was impossible to Apparate inside Hogwarts. So how'd you get down here so fast?"

"Is House-Elf magic, Aiji-sama!" Slinky bobbed his head, "Very different from wizards' magic, it is."

"Then, if we wanted to, say, get out of here and appear near our dorms," Aiji smirked, "you could do that?"

Slinky nodded frantically, "Yes, if Master and his girlsies hold on to Slinky, Slinky be honored to!"

"Great!" Aiji grinned, teeth bared. The 'girlsies' bit made her twitch.

"Wait," Sally-Anne looked at Kazutoshi, "House-Elf magic doesn't follow the rules of wizards' magic, much like spiritual energy doesn't, right?"

"House-Elf magic is closer to wizarding magic, but certain rules don't apply to it," Kazutoshi was just too relieved to have a way out to care. "If you're going to ask why I didn't use my reiki, think of it this way. If I had used it to get rid of the wards that kept the size-reducing spells from working, there was a chance that the rest of the Mirror's enchantments would also fall and render it useless."

"That wasn't where I was going, but thanks for the clarification," said Sally-Anne. She then turned to Slinky with a too big grin, "Would you be a dearie and reduce this mirror to this size," she showed the two inches between her fingers, "without disrupting the magic and enchantments it already has on?"

Slinky heard the order in the polite request. However, as fond as he was of Miss Salina (his version of Sally-Anne), he served his master first and foremost. Kazutoshi-dono had freed him from the bad wizard and then had deemed to take his Oath of Servitude and treated him kindly. No, he would not disrespect his great Master by taking another's orders before his own.

Kazutoshi saw Slinky's dilemma, "Do it Slinky. Take any orders from them as you would any of mine."

Slinky snapped his fingers and the Mirror of Erised was nothing more than the size of a small charm. Sally-Anne grabbed it and held it close to her bosom, stroking it with euros in her eyes.

Aiji grabbed onto Slinky's right shoulder, followed by Kazutoshi who slid his hand on the left one. Daphne grabbed Slinky's upper-arm and Lythiel held on to his elbow. Sally-Anne took the remaining elbow into her hand. So, with a POP, the golden chamber was, once again, devoid of animate life and one magical object less.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Albus Dumbledore was, arguably, one of the busiest men in all of Britain, maybe even all of Europe. He had to deal with his duties as Headmaster of the best wizarding school in Britain, his duties as Chief Warlock for the Wizengamot, then there were his duties as the Supreme Mugwump for the ICW, then there's his unofficial and unpaid duties, such as, trying to find where Voldemort's apparition was hiding (currently in the back of Quirinus Quirell's head), trying to convince stubborn and self-serving idiots that the peace won't last, finding Tom's weaknesses, analyzing memories to determine what Tom did to himself, keeping himself and his people informed, etc….

But, his most important self-imposed task was training Alyssa Potter for her inevitable battle, and possible death, against Tom. It was a task he devoted himself with the dedication that could rival Bellatrix Lestrange's to Voldemort and Albus hated himself for it.

He knew what he was doing. He knew that he was training an innocent little girl who had the bad luck to be born on the last day of July to become a martyr. He knew that he was leaving her in the care of people that would treat her the same way certain pureblood families treated the family squibs. He knew that he would be placing her in danger in a place that was supposed to be safe. He knew that he was going to destroy the girl's life. He knew that she wasn't going to get a chance to live, not with his manipulations in place. He knew, he couldn't claim in any way that he was unaware of the damage he caused and would cause her, and that was why he was having problems looking himself in the mirror.

'The Greater Good,' Gellert's infamous slogan, a saying that had once been Albus' dogma before his eyes had been forcefully opened. Albus had once believed in it with great fervor, prayed to the words, until he saw the results. When he had incarcerated Gellert inside Nurmengard, Albus had promised himself that he wouldn't make the same mistakes as Gellert. But had he, really? Albus had told himself that so long as he held no real position of power, he wasn't becoming what he most feared. But power needn't any titles. Everyone deferred to Albus, not only for his defeat of the Darkest Wizard in the early 20th century, but also for his genius. The Minister might have been the one that made the pretty speeches and had every eye on him, but it was Albus who made the judgment calls and the real decisions. But normal people, those that didn't posses his genius, didn't know how to govern themselves. After all, the public had voted for a Neanderthal like Cornelius Fudge to lead them. It didn't help that the system and ministry itself was as corrupt as it came.

But, he had forced himself to look in the mirror when he took certain steps after he heard that gods-be-damned prophecy. He had always wondered how Gellert could have been so cutthroat, almost heartless in his actions, that the 'ends always justified the means' for him even when it meant obliterating an entire village. When Albus heard the prophecy, understood it and how to achieve the most fortuitous results from it, he understood at least a part of his love's mentality.

When one knows the positive outcome of an event, one does whatever it takes to achieve it. So much so, that even if it goes against our morals, we will still go through with it.

As Gellert was pre-cognizant, he could 'see' his little 'utopia' where muggles were under his control, too scared to even so much as look at a wizarding child wrong. It had made Gellert all the more eager and willing to do anything to make it come true.

Albus felt then that those with pre-cognizant abilities (controllable but sometimes inaccurate and changeable seeing into the future) were Machiavellian by overuse of their gifts. They saw things that could happen and did things to gain the more favorable future. For all that Albus knew, Gellert had merely befriended Albus not because he found the redhead interesting or wanted his company, but because he 'saw' that Albus would be an invaluable partner in crime. He never knew the answer and he didn't want to know now.

Sociopath. A person who was very much aware of the difference between good and evil but did evil things anyway. That was how Albus had felt when he had placed baby Alyssa at the Dursleys' doorstep. If the Christian God his mother once believed in existed, Albus knew, at that precise moment, that he had a place reserved for him in Hell.

Albus sighed. It wasn't often that he had the time to dwell. Perhaps that was the reason he hadn't convinced himself out of his cruel schemes.

Not that some of them would come to effect. The Dursleys' abandonment of their niece had nipped some of his plans at the bud. Remus had nearly torn him to shreds after he had finished with the disgusting pig. Albus hadn't blamed him, he knew that he'd deserved it, so he waited for the pain. Minerva had stunned the raging Remus and turned on Albus with a snarl telling him that they could blame each other later, now they had to find the girl and bring her to Hogwarts. "If she's still alive," those words had hit home for Albus just how low he had fallen and how lower he would fall. Ten years, and not once had he checked on the girl, even a bit.

Imagine his shock when, not only was Alyssa still alive, but also had a family of her own in Japan. When Hagrid had reported that he found her, Albus had wept. Some part of Albus had been hoping that Alyssa, if she was still alive, would never be found. That she'd be able to enjoy a somewhat normal life, without a whole country's future on her shoulders.

Hagrid had to stay in Japan throughout the meeting and shopping for supplies. The Urameshi family, Hagrid had said, was not very well off. It had been much more convenient for the family to shop in Japan than to make a trip to England. After all, ever since Voldemort's rise, Japan and many other countries had disabled international magical travel to and from Europe as a safety measure. If Death Eaters wanted to get in to these countries, they had to go the long way.

Albus had laughed at the pensieve memories Hagrid had given him. Apparently, young Alyssa had thought that Hagrid was stalking her and her family, so when Hagrid had tried to get Alyssa alone, she had given him a black-eye. Albus had also learned that young Yuusuke was strong enough to throw Hagrid over his shoulder and that Madam Atsuko had a mean left hook. At least that meant that Albus didn't have to worry about Alyssa's fighting abilities, it might even be an advantage since wizards underestimated how a well placed hit could damage someone.

Finally, when Hagrid had used a translation charm, and even gave his excuses and reasons that it was valid to the understanding Albus, the family had been suspicious but accepting of the explanation of magic.

Albus had honestly thought that Alyssa would end up in Gryffindor. After all, she was bold and confident enough to confront a potentially dangerous stranger like she did. She was even blunt to the point of being rude and didn't hide her opinions. She also didn't seem all that ambitious even now. Not to mention that she and her family had been cordial enough to offer Hagrid a place to stay at their home (though it wasn't much) and had treated him to ramen as an apology for his injuries. Albus had also thought that Hufflepuff would have been an apt choice, as she was very loyal to her family. Loyal enough that she had Hagrid sneak her to Gringotts in the middle of the night to deposit some of the money in her trust fund to her family's muggle account. Although, he did suppose that should have been a sign of her Slytherin tendencies. But at the time, Albus had been thinking about how her brother and mother had told her to save all of her money for her college tuition.

Albus had to admit, he had been worried when she was sorted to Slytherin. Even though she had lived with a muggle family (and loved them very much), she was young enough that other people's opinions (particularly her peers) could have an impact on her. It had been quite the spectacle when she told the arrogant Malfoy where he could take his offer. He had been a bit nervous about Perks and Moon, more so the latter than anything. But young Lythiel had proven to be nothing like her parents, and young Sally-Anne was, while self-serving, a good friend. Young Daphne was, like her mother Antianara, vicious but sweet to her loved ones.

Albus shook his head when Fawkes' soft trilling took him out of his introspection. He smiled at the phoenix and said, "Perhaps an inspection of the stone is needed, yes, that is exactly what I'll do."

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Aiji and the rest were beginning to reconsider their theory about the mirror being a beard come Monday morning. Dumbledore hadn't made a speech or anything similar, hell, he hadn't even made any allusions to the third floor corridor at all. However, there was this tenseness to him that wasn't there before, something that seemed to scream "Oh, shit!" Although, really, they only caught on to that because they were looking for it and expecting for Dumbledore to have some sort of reaction. To everyone else, Dumbledore was the same as ever.

He kept flickering his eyes at Quirell, who was trying to make himself seem even more pathetic than usual. Interestingly enough, McGonagall and Snape, his right and left hand respectively, didn't know what he was anxious about if their puzzled, irritated, and edgy glances were any indication.

"So," Aiji drawled, "When exactly do winter hols start?"

"Around the beginning of December," Kazutoshi answered with a far too bright smile. Melinda, Ezven, and Nasrin eyed him with suspicion, every singe time he smiled like that something happened. Kazutoshi's mock-hurt look didn't faze them in the least bit. Too bad that the same couldn't be said about his fangirls and fanboys.

"Hope you all enjoy them," Lythiel smiled, resigned.

"And who said you're staying here alone," Daphne gave her a stern glare.

"Daff," Lythiel patted her shoulder, "I appreciate it, but it'd be awkward going to visit your gran with your folks, especially since she doesn't approve of me or my family, not that I can blame her on the last bit."

Daphne was about to say something biting so Lythiel continued, "Besides, think of it this way, at least I'll have the library to myself for almost a whole month."

"Maybe," Sally-Anne frowned, "But are you sure you don't want one of us to stay behind?"

"Sal, you've been sleeping with your dad's photo under your pillow for a week now," Lythiel deadpanned, "I'd say you're homesick enough as is."

When Daphne opened her mouth, "And don't even bother offering, Daff. I know you're dieing to see Asteria again, heck you've gotten her at least two different "coming back" presents already. Not to mention that you've been wearing aunty Zoë's perfume and you're always fingering the bracelet aunty Antianara gave you for your last birthday."

Daphne snapped her mouth shut then. It was true that she was getting homesick as well, but still…

Aiji sighed, this was going to be very awkward, "About that, Ly—"

"Don't you start, Ai," Lythiel continued spreading raspberry jam on her Bath buns, "It's kinda hard to deny you're missing your brother when you've been sleeping in his old clothes for a month now."

Aiji blushed, "I wasn't gonna to offer that. I wanna go back home as much as the next kid," she shoveled more scrambled eggs and kippers into her mouth to avoid the awkward silence.

"Oh," Lythiel whispered, she bit off a Bath bun with a generous amount of jam, "What were you going to say?"

"I was gonna say that I've talked with nii-chan, baa-san, and 'ka-san and they've been wanting to meet my new friends. I figured since Sal and Daff are gonna spend the hols with their folks, why don't you come with me?" Aiji averted her eyes to the ground and her cheeks reddened, this was embarrassing.

At Lythiel's silence, Aiji continued, "We'll mostly be at our apartment and it's kinda small so we'll have to share the room with nii-chan and you might have to sleep on the floor with a futon, or maybe you can take my bed and I'll take the floor. Although we might visit baa-chan and her temple's pretty big and—"

Lythiel reached in front of her and squeezed Aiji's hand, stopping the other girl's babble. Lythiel's smile was bright and happy, her cerulean eyes shining with warmth, "Thank you, Aiji. This means a lot to me. But, what about transportation? Or, hell, you haven't seen your family in months, won't it be awkward if you come back with me?"

"Don't worry about it, I've got it covered, even the passport," Aiji waved it off, "It's not like it's a big deal. 'Sides, nii-chan's just happy I finally have friends my age, same as everyone else. And I talked to them, and they're okay with everything since you already know most of my family situation," her eyes flickered to Kazutoshi for a split second. Lythiel tilted her head in understanding. So, Aiji's family knew that the girls knew.

"At least let me pay for the airplane tickets," Lythiel smiled.

"Already paid for 'em," Aiji grinned.

"Fine," Lythiel laughed, "That just means I'll owe you the equivalent of that."

"Consider it an early Christmas present," Aiji shrugged.

"I don't celebrate Christmas, remember?" Lythiel snickered.

"Yule present then," Aiji said.

Daphne took the opportunity to grasp Aiji's other hand and squeezed affectionately, "Then that just means we'll have to get you a nice Yule present."

"Speaking of parents," Sally-Anne said when she finished chewing her buttered roll, "My dad wants to meet with you all since you're my friends, especially you Ai. I mean, he does somewhat know about Daff and Ly, but not you."

"Oh! Ri-Ri also wants me to introduce you two," Daphne gushed, "You've been her idol for how long now?"

"Wow, I've got my own fan-club and I didn't even notice," Aiji said with good humor, "So what am I? A fierce Amazon sent to save the day or maybe a female Knight in shining armor?"

"Actually, as we were growing up, Ri-Ri's fantasies about you resembled the magical girl genre," Daphne grinned. Shizuru had snuck in a _Cutie Honey_ with the rest of Aiji's manga, Daphne was, of course, hooked by the first page.

"So long as I'm more of a Cutie Honey or a Devil Hunter Yoko than a Creamy Mami, I've got not complaints," Aiji said.

Daphne didn't catch on to the other two references, but she was quick to tease, "Let's see… someone would be in danger, check; you'd try to thwart their plans, check; when things got tough you'd transform and become stronger, check; you'd save the day and leave a grateful audience, check. Yep, you were most definitely some version of Cutie Honey, minus the whole android bit."

"What are you all talking about?" Pansy wrinkled her nose while Stacie face-palmed and Millicent glared at the quartet in warning. Draco shot Pansy an irritated glare, annoyed that she had let them know that they were being eavesdropped.

"You make a lousy spy, Parkinson," Sally-Anne munched on her sausages, "the point of snooping is to not let the target know you are doing so."

Pansy clenched her teeth, "And I'll bet your discussion revolves around something immensely childish and muggle."

"Wow, you know what "revolves" and "immensely" mean?" Daphne sighed in mock-pride, "Amazing! Can you wipe your own arse as well?"

"Funny," Millicent growled, "I'd say that describes you more accurately, _Princess_," she spat the title with a derision usually used by the Gryffindors.

"Actually," Sally-Anne didn't take her focus from devouring her miniature mountain of toasts with a liberal amount of blueberry jam, "That would be a more apt description of Parkinson than of Daphne. The Princess archetype has always been closely associated with the Damsel in Distress archetype because they both need a Knight or a Prince to save them. Although, granted, the Princess archetype can grow into the Queen one, but that's really rare for many personalities. Also, even though some Princess archetypes look out for the welfare of others, that is also rare and most definitely against Parkinson's personality. Therefore, since Parkinson always needs saving or someone to defend her, i.e. Bulstrode, she fits the Princess dash Damsel in Distress title."

Everyone around her was looking at her as though she had grown an extra head. "What?" Stacie almost chocked on her carrots and fried tomatoes.

"Oh, come on!" Sally-Anne rolled her eyes as she washed down her food with milk, "Don't tell me you don't read enough to notice the typical story archetypes?"

"So," Morag suddenly butted from her conversation with Blaise and Theodore, "If Parkinson is our Princess in Distress, what is Greengrass?"

"The Queen," Daphne sniffed imperiously over her glass of orange juice.

Sally-Anne chewed on her crumpet, "It's an archetype of power and authority, unlike the Princess one. Although in fairytales, Queens are usually portrayed as arrogant and will do almost anything to keep their authority. But then again, they are usually written by patriarchal chauvinists that want women to be submissive brooders, so really, any form of female empowerment is discouraged by them… But regardless of misconceptions and half-truths, the Queen is all about personal authority, control, and leadership skills. (2)"

"Leadership skills, Greengrass?" Draco chortled, "Everyone knows Urameshi's the leader of you four."

"Not really, no," Aiji shrugged while adding some jacket potatoes to her plate, "If you want a leader, look at my nii-chan."

"Besides," Lythiel sipped her coffee, "Even if Daff isn't a typical leader, she still has a great deal of personal control and authority over her own life, which is more than people can say about Parkinson."

Sally-Anne nodded although she personally thought that Lythiel had more Queen characteristics but let it slide. It wasn't as though anyone knew that those archetypes were psychological Jungian references and that every person represented more than one archetype. If it gave them more power among their House, all the better.

"So Queenie," Pansy's teeth were clenched so tight that it was a wonder they weren't breaking, "What are you going to do now with your court."

"No darling, no matter how much you flatter me I won't let you have the Eastern Palace," Daphne's smile was too sparkly to be sincere, "You'll just have to contend with what you have, sweetie. Wouldn't want to end up a spoilt brat as an adult, would you?"

Millicent was about to stand up at Pansy's hiss but, "Keep in mind, sugar, that my Amazon is ten times stronger than your Knight," Daphne inclined her head towards Millicent.

Aiji almost snorted out her coffee, "Oh come on, Daff, it's not her fault she doesn't get it even after a fact has been demonstrated over and over."

"Mental deficits are nothing to be ashamed of, sweetheart," Daphne patted Pansy's hand, which the latter snatched back.

Millicent let out a pained yelp when Aiji, who couldn't reach the ground with her short legs, kicked her shins.

Stacie decided that now was as good a time as any to cut in, "Come on Pansy, Millicent, we'll be late for class if we dawdle. And really, if we stay here any longer, we might give into temptation and stuff our faces like certain piglets are doing right now." Parkinson was soooo owing her for this.

Pansy nodded with all the dignity she could muster and left with Millicent trailing behind her.

Lythiel glanced at the retreating trio's backs, "D'you think we should tell them that if a diet is not done properly, they are essentially starving themselves?"

A couple of eavesdropping Ravenclaw and Slytherin girls blanched and started to add more filling foods to their plates.

"Nah," Aiji shrugged, "She'll probably think we're lying or keep at it just to spite us."

Lythiel clinked her coffee mug with Aiji's in agreement.

Daphne shook her head and tucked in to her trifle with angelica, chocolate flakes, and glace cherries on top. She earned every single one of these calories yesterday, no way was she going to feel guilty about eating so much.

Nasrin turned accusing eyes on Kazutoshi, "You planned this, didn't you?"

"Whatever do you mean, my wild rose?" his smile was dripping with charm as he held her hand.

Nasrin was about to fall for the same trick almost 86 percent of the girls on campus did until Ezven interrupted, "Yesterday, you were around the four for an innumerable amount of time and you gave Perks something. What was it?"

"What is this, the Spanish Inquisition?" Kazutoshi kept his smile. It unnerved Ezven.

Nasrin took the reprieve to mentally bludgeon herself out of it, 'This bloke should be used as a national weapon.'

"What do you gain from this?" Melinda asked while looking anywhere but at Kazutoshi. She was not going to fall for that trick.

A finger under her chin proved her wrong, "How rude! Is that what you think of me, my sweet serpent?"

Damn the bastard for making her want to shag him stupid!

An aggravated Ezven slapped the back of Kazutoshi's head, "Will you stop flirting, already?"

"There's nothing wrong with appreciating another's beauty, Ezven," Kazutoshi purred just because he knew it would piss Ezven off even more so. And of course, who could forget the mixed reactions of arousal and fury that came from Melinda and Nasrin.

Something caught his eye and he stood up, "Terribly sorry to eat and run, lovelies, but I've got to go find the path of life," he left the Great Hall.

Nasrin snorted and returned to her sugared porridge, "Coincidentally, he always has to find some abstract or utterly impossible task to do every time a certain pair of twins get into some mischief."

"Oh, happy were the days we could give those two a detention and point deduction without Shinmei covering for them," Ezven scowled.

"He needs to find a new set of entertainment," Melinda grunted.

Aiji, Lythiel, Daphne, and Sally-Anne snickered at the prefects' not-so-subtle conversation and left the Hall as well. As much as Snape was tolerant of Aiji for her status as a snake, he still would fry their arses if they were late.

On their way to the stairs, a figure collided with Lythiel just as they were about to turn. Lythiel fell back-first with the older girl on top of her.

"Uff!" Lythiel breathed over the somewhat heavy figure.

"Ly!"

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" the older girl stammered while getting up using her hands on the floor. "Are you alright? Did I hurt you? I'm so sorry, I'm terribly clumsy on a good day and I wasn't paying attention to where I was going and—"

"It's fine," Lythiel waved her hand, "I wasn't paying attention either," she got up with Daphne and Aiji's help. For some odd reason, she was very sluggish today. Probably because she exhausted so much magic yesterday plus all of the physical stunts. Yeah, that was it.

Daphne frowned, "You sure you're alright, Ly? You've been acting a bit weary since you woke up. It even took you longer to wake up than usual." Even with training cancelled was left unspoken.

"I'm fine," Lythiel shook her head slowly, "Just tired."

Aiji glanced at the older girl, "How 'bout you? Anything broken or should we continue interrogating Ly?"

"No, everything is fine," she laughed it off as her hair turned orange.

The girls stared at her in shock, "How?" Sally-Anne started.

"Oh, right!" she grinned, "You're all firsties so you wouldn't be used to it since we're from different Houses," she gestured to her yellow and black tie, "I'm a Metamorphmagus."

"Huh?" Aiji asked.

"It means I can naturally change my physical attributes without a wand," she said, "Consider me as a sort of shape-shifter. Except that it doesn't come with animal transformations with the package. That I have to learn along with everyone else," she grinned, "I'm Nymphadora Tonks, call me Nymphadora and you're dead."

"What were your parents on when they named you?" Aiji smirked in good humor.

"Don't know, but I want some," Tonks smiled.

"Considering what your name means, Ai," Lythiel said, "I don't think you have any place to point fingers."

"I keep on telling you," Aiji said, "She thought I was a boy and didn't think to check."

"Oh?" Tonks said, "Now I have to know, if only so I can gain a partner in misery."

"My name is spelt with "ai" the kanji for "indigo" and "ji" the kanji for "gentleman" or "samurai."" Aiji gave rueful smile. Only her 'ka-san.

Tonks looked at her from head to foot, "Goodness, attitude-wise it fits, but, wow."

"It helps when I feel like crossdressing if nothing else," Aiji commented with a wry smile.

"To continue with the introductions," Daphne smiled, "I'm Daphne Greengrass, this little cutie is Lythiel Moon, our resident tomboy is Aiji Urameshi, and the paranoid shadow behind us is Sally-Anne Perks."

Sally-Anne flicked some hair behind her right ear, stroking reassuringly a barrette holding her hair back. A barrette that had the Mirror of Erised, front to her hair, as the centerpiece.

"Just because I grew up with horror stories of the other Houses ganging up on Slytherins doesn't mean you can make fun," Sally-Anne said in a deceptively flippant voice.

Tonks caught on with a wince, "Unfortunately, those are true. Although, the ganging up is usually more verbal than anything else, unless, of course, if you're a real tosser like Preston."

"Preston?" Aiji scratched her head, "Why does that name sound familiar?"

Sally-Anne sighed in exasperation, "Blond hair, more or less medium height, far too cocky for his own good… you know, that bloke you sent to the hospital wing two weeks ago."

"Oh, him! The one with the decent knee kick, I remember," Aiji nodded to herself.

To her credit, Tonks only gazed at Aiji incredulously three seconds less than others usually do, "Since it's my fault for crashing into you, why don't I get rid of some bruises you must've gotten. I'm pretty good with healing spells."

"That's not really necessary," Lythiel insisted. However, Daphne had other plans.

"Sure!"

Tonks took out her wand and muttered some words, instantly, Lythiel's back stopped bothering her. That was good, her head was starting to annoy her with all the pounding it was doing.

Aiji turned to Tonks, "Say, Nymph-sempai, you wouldn't know that diagnosing spell Pomfrey-baba uses?"

"No, that's a spell only those specifically studying to be Healers know," Tonks frowned, "Nymph-sempai?"

"You said we couldn't call you Nymphadora," Aiji grinned, "How about something to check for fevers?"

"What?" Lythiel asked while Tonks did the thermometer spell. It read 99.8 F, not on the alarming levels but…

"Does your throat feel scratchy and dry?" Aiji sniffed Lythiel, "You smell a bit feverish. Maybe you should call in sick in case it gets worse."

"Do your limbs feel heavy?" Sally-Anne asked, "I noticed you felt better when you were sitting down. Even then, you only ate two Bath buns instead of the usual ten."

"You also drank your coffee with sugar and cream," Aiji frowned, "You always drink it straight."

"Mates," Lythiel started before Daphne's hand felt her forehead.

"Yep, you are most definitely sick," Daphne nodded, "Let's get you to Pomfrey's."

"But I'm fine!" Lythiel yelled with a somewhat hoarse voice.

"Ly," Daphne looked her in the eyes, "You sweated like a pig yesterday from all of the exercise you did, then you used up a great deal of your magic, and let's not forget that yesterday was colder in the Dungeons than usual."

"Actually," Sally-Anne said, "I don't recall you using the warming charm when we got back to the dorms."

At Lythiel's blush, Aiji snorted, "Wet with sweat plus freezing environment equals cold."

Tonks reminded the girls of her presence, "Even if you aren't sick yet, you should still go to Pomfrey's. The best cure is prevention, after all."

"But, I can't afford to miss classes!" 'Especially not one I'm good at!'

"Don't worry," Tonks smiled gently, "Pomfrey's used to Slytherin firsties getting sick at this time. Living in the Dungeons, especially during cold seasons, doesn't do much for people's constitutions. There's even some older Slytherins that still get sick nowadays just because of a forgotten warming charm."

Aiji had enough, she crouched down in front of Lythiel before the blonde could protest. Daphne and Sally-Anne had taken the hint and grabbed Lythiel bellow her armpits to hoist her on Aiji's back. Once she was secured, Aiji began to leave for the hospital wing with Daphne, Sally-Anne, and Tonks in tow.

"You don't have to accompany us if you don't want to," Lythiel said, uncomfortable with all the attention.

"I can't in good conscience let a sick firstie go waltzing around without making sure she's under Madame Pomfrey's care," Tonks smiled.

"Especially when said firstie's a freaking workaholic," Aiji sniped.

"Still, Ly's got a point," Sally-Anne turned to Tonks with a concerned frown, "Won't you be late for classes if you escort us?"

"Don't worry about it kiddo, it's for a good cause," Tonks patted her on the back, "Besides, Pomfrey will give me a note and it's not like I'll miss anything important with Quirell teaching."

"Who needs that class?" Daphne sniffed, "That man couldn't teach his way out of a paper bag."

"You're telling me. I want to be an Auror and to get accepted into the program you need to have a lot of high-scoring NEWTs, especially in Defense," Tonks all but growled.

"How do you get by?" Daphne asked, genuinely interested.

"Study groups, that's the only way to go, especially since no Defense prof lasts the year. Unfortunately, we ended up with a bad one in my last year here," Tonks sighed despondently.

"Ouch," Sally-Anne said, "Maybe we should start our own?"

"You should. You might not feel it now, but come OWLs, and you'll be wishing you had taken extra lessons just to keep up with what should have been the regular curriculum."

They chatted along the way to the Hospital Wing, with Tonks tripping from everything material to thin air. Lythiel had fought a valiant battle against sleep, but it had won and she was sleeping on Aiji's back.

Tonks was a really likeable person, they all found. She was funny, kind, lively, smart, and boisterous. She regaled them with tales of her own at Hogsmeade, the mischief she got up to as a firstie and secondie, and the pranks she pulled on certain individuals who shall remain unnamed with her shape-shifting abilities.

Aiji was in the middle of telling Tonks of one of her crossdressing pranks when Madame Pomfrey stuck her head out at the sound of voices at this time. When her eyes spied the sleeping Lythiel, she was immediately on the alert, "What happened here?"

"Ly hasn't been feeling good since this morning, Madam Pomfrey," Daphne said, "She forgot to put on the warming charm yesterday and—"

"Say no more, Miss Greengrass," Pomfrey waved the girls in, "Honestly, I don't even want to know what Slytherin was thinking when he located his dorms in the Dungeons. Or better yet, why hasn't someone relocated the dorms by now?"

"Think that they'll do it now if we go on a hunger strike?" Aiji drawled.

"You shouldn't have to risk your health any more than you already are, Miss Urameshi," Pomfrey's lips thinned, "What are you here for Miss Tonks?"

"Just doing my good deed for the day, Madame," Tonks smiled.

"Trust me, with Ly, it's all about safety in numbers," Aiji said, "She'd have insisted until she was blue in the face that she was fine even with an 110 degree fever."

"Very well, then," Pomfrey helped Aiji put Lythiel on a stretcher. As soon as Lythiel was tucked in and comfortable, Pomfrey started to put monitoring charms.

When Pomfrey was done with some of the external healing, such was putting a cool towel over Lythiel's head, she turned to the girls with late slips on her hands.

"Just so you know," Sally-Anne said as she took her slip, "Ly will insist that a Pepper-Up would be enough to heal her just so she could get back into class."

"Warning received," Pomfrey said, "Don't worry, she won't leave here for the rest of the day if I have anything to say about it."

Daphne was patting Lythiel's hand and mumbling something about visiting her and sending positive energy waves. Aiji sweatdropped and tugged Daphne away while Tonks tried not to laugh.

Magic mirrors that showed one's desires or not, things didn't change much. Business was as usual.

~!#$%^&*()~!#$%^&*()_~!#$%^&*()_~!#$%^*&_)+!#$%^*&)(_+~!#$%^&*()~!#$%&^)(_~!#$%^*&)(_~!#$%^(*_)~!#$%&^(*_)~!#$%)

(1) an Afador is a mixed dog breed. It's a mix of an Afghan Hound and a Labrador.

(2) All of this was found at and paraphrased from meta-religion (put dot com) and after that /Psychiatry/Analytical_psychology/a_gallery_of_ archetypes

Yeah, I know. For those of you that are Japanese savvy, you were all expecting Aiji to mean (Love "ai" Male Child "ji"). That is one, and it seems to be the most popular, way of reading the name Aiji. Now, while I think a name like that would be a strong nod to cannon Harry, I don't think that Atsuko would have been idealistic enough to name a kid that, especially if we take into account how low she was at that point in her life. Plus, the "Yuu" in Yuusuke means "eerie." "Indigo" is a color usually associated with sadness. Considering the circumstances that Aiji was adopted, I thought it more fitting. The "gentleman/samurai" bit was for the gender confusion. Although, granted I could have had fun with the "Love Child" misnomer but... this is the result.

For those of you that want to ask about that chapter with the Unbreakable Vow and Aiji claimed her name meant "son," that was her getting lost in translation and her translation spell went awry... at least, that's my excuse (sweatdrop). Well, considering that her name is masculine, she was trying to say that her mother thought she had gained another son... hence the miscomunication. Hehe.

This might be the last chapter of Aiji I'll post before I graduate from college this year. I'm not too sure, I'll see what I can do. Check my bio for more info.


	10. So much for complication free business

Wow! Has it been that long? (Looks out for the pitchforks) Hehe... well, the good news is I'm baaaaack! Finally graduated with honors and an original novella under my belt. So, I'm sure some of you have been expecting me to post something in June... and all I can say is that I took an impromptu vacation to the Canaary Islands to visit my big sis. BEST SIS EVER! No really, it was great and it helped me relax after this hectic school year. Besides, it's been a while since I've seen her.

So. Since I feel extremely guilty, I decided to give you guys a long chapter in return for your patience.

AIJI: 'Bout damned time.

YUUSUKE: Yeah, she's been too busy with that Lysandra chick to worry about us.

Um, mates? You know that I love you all equally and that unlike you two, Lysandra had a deadline?

######################################################################

Aiji hated sitting still with nothing to do. To make it worse, nosy students were coming around to bug her right before she had to take a nice, sixteen-hour long plane ride back home. Parkinson had already come by for the typical shounen-style rival spiel about watching her back, yadda, yadda, yadda… and received a fist to the face for her efforts, Bulstrode too for interfering. Although, granted, Aiji and the rest did feel bad for Davis. Lugging around the ickle princess and knight was not fun at all.

Malfoy just said a very succinct "watch yourself, Urameshi!" and rushed from the compartment before any of the girls opened their mouths.

Coward.

Morag, Blaise, and Theodore had been by to wish them a happy holiday and then went back to their own compartment. Plotting world domination, no doubt, according to Aiji. "It's always the quiet ones," she grumbled.

It wasn't ten minutes into the train ride before Aiji caved in and started doing push-ups and sit-ups. Anything to get rid of the excess energy.

"Ai?" Lythiel asked from her position near the window, cross-legged with a _Standard Book of Spells Grade 1_ on her lap, "What are you doing?"

"You might wanna move 'round while you can," Aiji said, "Trust me, you'll thank yourself once you're on the plane."

Lythiel glanced dubiously at Sally-Anne, who was immersed in _Little People, Big Plans_ by Ragnok the Pigeon-toed.

"My plane ride's barely three-hours long," Sally-Anne said without looking up, "Most of those lost hours are wasted just getting by the check-points and waiting at shoddy terminals."

"But still," Daphne said, "It's sixteen hours worth of… flying. She can do some homework or read something or watch that TB thingy."

"TV," Aiji and Sally-Anne corrected automatically.

"Whatever," Daphne said.

"If Ly can find some way of doing something other than reading up there, then she's a super-human," Aiji said.

Sally-Anne nodded, "My body does a full system shut-down after a few minutes."

Lythiel looked at Aiji, then her eyes came back to the high-lighted text in front of her, a silent debate going on in her mind.

"Oh come on, Ly," Daphne rolled her eyes, "you've already done half the holidays' work. You _can_ not do anything for a couple of days, y'know."

"You can use that to put you to sleep," Aiji said, "It'll help ya with jetlag."

"I rather like getting straight Os in theory, thanks," Lythiel said, "And I'm about two thirds done, actually."

It was true. She'd already finished the Astronomy, History of Magic, Potions, Herbology, and Defense Against the Dark Arts papers the first week they received said homework. Her sick leave, plus the girls unanimously (although grudgingly on Aiji's part) deciding to lie low until the Headmaster got over his losing the mirror snit, had given her ample time to get ahead on her work and studying.

"Case and point," Sally-Anne said, "I've only done the Potions, the Herbology, and the Astronomy papers and you don't see me working myself into a tizzy."

"Only," Aiji and Daphne snorted.

"And coincidentally," Lythiel said, "You've left the subjects you're best at for last."

"Less troublesome and less break-ruining that way."

Aiji and Daphne gazed at each other.

"Leave it for last?" Aiji asked.

"Yep," Daphne nodded.

The compartment door opened once again and Hermione Granger's bushy head poked in, "Oh! There you are."

"Yo honya-chan."

"Hey Granger."

"Yo."

"Granger."

Hermione's eyes widened at the picture before her, Aiji's spread body held up in a tight push-up was covering the small patch ground in the compartment. Daphne, Lythiel, and Sally-Anne held their legs up on the seats with books, candy, crumpled empty plastic sandwich wrappers, and their bags between them.

"What on earth—" Hermione started, "What are you doing?"

"What?" Aiji said, "If you think I'm gonna sit still when I've got a sixteen hour flight waiting for me, then you've just passed the genius o' meter and gone on to the insane part."

Surprising the girls, Hermione had a pinched expression of what could be sympathy on her face. Or she could have just smelled something horrible. "Oh, no wonder," Hermione said, "So it's true that Japan and some other countries have blocked international magical transportation ever since the last war here?"

"Would we be taking a plane if it wasn't?" Aiji deadpanned.

"Ouch," she winced.

"Is it that bad?" Lythiel asked with trepidation. 'What have I gotten myself into?'

"Never flew anywhere for more than ten hours' worth," Hermione said, "But it still doesn't stop it from being an uncomfortable ride."

"Told you," Aiji said. Sally-Anne used the right side of her lips to mouth the same as Aiji while her left side remained placid.

"So it wasn't just Aiji being restless," Daphne mused with a teasing smile.

"Hey!" Aiji swiped at her and did a bouncing push-up to keep her balance.

"Ignore the kiddies, Granger," Sally-Anne smirked, "They're just excited about going home—"

Sally-Anne's head was caught in Aiji's playful headlock. "You're a kiddie yourself, bishoujo-chaaaaaan!"

Sally-Anne mock growled and poked at Aiji's ticklish side, inciting a tickle war that Daphne soon joined.

Lythiel glanced at Hermione with mock irritation, "So, was there anything you wanted to tell us before their inner savage-children came out?"

Hermione had an odd look in her eyes, something almost akin to envy, before she shook herself and said, "No, just wanted to wish you all a happy break and an early merry Christmas. And to thank you all again, for, you know…"

That stopped the tickle-fest long enough for Aiji to say: "Well, if you're still hung up on that—"

Lythiel clasped her hand over Aiji's mouth, "You're not allowed to bribe people into doing your homework."

Sally-Anne and Daphne snickered at Aiji's attempt at the puppy-dog eyes. They never worked on Lythiel.

"No," Lythiel said, "How else are you going to learn, huh?"

Aiji shook her head free, "Yare, yare… All kidding aside, honya-chan, no biggie."

"Right," Hermione said, a smile breaking through her face despite her best efforts, "See you after break," she waved and left amidst a chorus of farewells.

Sally-Anne turned to Lythiel and Aiji, "D'you two still have it?"

'It' being the miniaturized Mirror of Erised.

"Oh come on, don't you trust me?" Aiji said, "Don't answer that."

"I've got it," Lythiel said while she put away Adalbert Waffling's _Magical Theory _into her bag, "Don't worry."

"Sempai put it in a warded box," Aiji said, "That way even the metal detectors won't react to the magic. His words, not mine."

"Not just a pretty face with a few scrolls, is he?" Daphne said.

"Have we decided which museums…" Sally-Anne lingered, not willing to speak plainly just in case someone was listening in.

"The Avalon sounds promising," Lythiel said, "And they're very generous to anyone who… unearths lost or strange magical objects. The same goes for the British Museum of Sorcery."

"Yeah, but what we need to find is one that won't ask too many questions," Aiji said. "I still think we should look outside of the UK, maybe in France or Germany… who knows, they might pay more for the BAM."

BAM was the acronym Aiji had chosen when ME felt too obvious. "You can't get more self-explanatory than Big Ass Mirror," she'd said.

"No matter where we go, someone will ask questions," Lythiel said.

"Even if it means not getting a leg-up on the competition?" Aiji said.

"If all else fails, we could always go to someone non-legit," Daphne jokingly said.

"Not a bad idea," Sally-Anne said, "We can charge extra for paranoia."

"I was being sarcastic," Daphne said.

A polite knock interrupted their little spat.

"Come in," Daphne said with a syrupy sweet "I'm an innocent ickle angel" tone of voice.

"If that doesn't scream I'm up to something," Lythiel murmured as Kazutoshi opened the compartment door with a grin.

"And how are my favorite little charges," he grinned, "Up to no good as usual?"

"Like you have any place to talk, Mr. Enabler," Sally-Anne said.

"True, true, that does make me an accomplice," he said, "And like any good accomplice, I should hope that I'll be in on the plans for a certain mirror?"

"Yeah, you can start by telling 'em that we need a buyer outside of Britain," Aiji said.

"And Sally over here has lost her mind and thinks we should use non-legit corners," Lythiel thrusted her thumb at Sally-Anne.

"Well," he drawled, "I checked with my old man's advisors and I found us a buyer."

"You did!" the girls cried, "When?"

"Just a few days ago," he said, "Don't worry, this fella's legit, somewhat—"

"What do you mean _somewhat_?" Lythiel bellowed.

"I mean that this person's a bit on the loose side of the law," he said, "Urameshi-kun is already familiar with this person… even acquired a little something from them."

"I did?" Aiji had a proverbial question mark above her head.

"Mhm," he said, "This person is human and you bought an artifact."

"I did that all of September, baka," she said.

"If you can't figure it out…" he trailed off.

"This is our justly acquired mirror and money we're talking about here," Sally-Anne cut in, "Stop bollocking around and tell us."

"Tell you what," he grinned, "If Urameshi-kun can figure it out before we get to the station, I'll give you these."

Out of nowhere, Kazutoshi took out four sandwiches. But these weren't like the sandwiches they'd bought from the kindly old witch from the train trolley. Those were nothing but grocer-bought sliced bread with cheese, ham, lettuce, tuna, or other things stacked in the middle. Filling but nothing special. The sandwiches in Kazutoshi's hands were foot long baguettes visible from the plastic tube wrappings on them, fresh smelling too. One of them had ham, lettuce, butter, and brie. Another had chorizo, mozzarella, and tomatoes. Another had tuna, mayonnaise, corn, and lettuce. The last one had chicken, teriyaki sauce, provolone cheese, onions, and butter. Sally-Anne, Daphne, Lythiel, and Aiji's favorites, respectively.

Mouth watering at the sight, Aiji just had to ask, "Where did you get those?"

"The Three Broomsticks," he said, "Madam Rosmerta is very accommodating. She even looked up how to properly cook teriyaki sauce when I placed the order last week."

That they could believe. The only way that Aiji got to eat any Japanese food was if Slinky cooked it. None of the other house-elves or shops in Hogsmeade served anything Japanese. Everything at Hogsmeade was provincial, so all the food, aside from the sweetshop Honeydukes, was typically Wizarding Scottish. Not that Aiji had any complains, the food was great, she just craved a little mochi every once in a while. That and Slinky made one mean Osaka-style okonomiyaki.

"I don't see why you need to make a wager," Sally-Anne said, "You already paid for them and they are our favorites, so that indicates that you'll give them to us either way."

"Chorizo, mozzarella, tomatoes, baguette," Daphne left for food la-la-land.

"Well… I do have a sixteen hour flight like our two ladies," he mused, "And plane food is just appalling…"

"It's that creepy Tendo-baba from the wand shop isn't she?" Aiji said, "I knew there was something off about her, she kept going on and on about how I'd do great and maybe terrible things and kick ass and take names—"

"As creepy as Tendo-sensei can be," Kazutoshi grinned in sympathy, "That's not her."

"Tetsu-hoppeta from the bank!" Aiji said.

"Nope," he laughed, "I told you, this person's human."

"I know! It's Hanatsubo-san from the greenhouse—"

Sally-Anne tuned her out and petted her snowy white owl in sympathy, "Yeah, I know, Hedwig. Love her but I wish I had a gag sometimes."

~!#$%^&*()_~!#$%^*&)(_+~!#$%^(*_)~!#$%^(*_)!~#$%^(*_)

Sirius cursed as he almost spilled some of Yukina's miso soup on his shirt. He was nervous, his shaking hands and inability to stay still were testament to that. But who could blame him? His goddaughter was coming home, with a friend, a pureblood friend at that, and she didn't know that he was here and innocent.

Yuusuke had reassured him that Aiji would not mind and listen to the story calmly and rationally, "after a few knocks to the head." Sirius wasn't too sure if he was joking or not.

"Is there something wrong with it, Black-san?" Yukina asked, ready to prepare something else for him at the first peep of dislike. Yukina, Keiko, and Botan had all been mothering him back to health ever since he got to Genkai's temple.

Sirius could admit to himself, he had been a skeletal and dirty mess months ago, but he was better now. His former depressingly long hair had been cut short to his nape, a sign that he was much happier. His beard and mustache were long gone. His nails were trimmed and no-longer weak and breaking at the slightest pressure. He was clean and took showers regularly. He could now only count four ribs every time he saw himself bare-chested. He could take long walks without feeling weak at the middle or running on adrenalin to reach the finish. Hell, he was getting close to eating solid foods. If that was not reason enough to celebrate, he didn't know what was.

Learning Japanese had been a godsend really. Even if he relied on a magical ring that translated everything he heard and said, he still had to crack down the books and learn under Kurama and Genkai-baba's stern eyes.

It was a much more soothing act than he had expected. He hadn't been forced to sit down and learn something in so long, even the restless need to move from the butt-numbing chair was a welcome. In retrospect, it wasn't much of a surprise. Sirius had been a student for around fourteen years of his life: home-schooled, educated at Hogwarts, he even had to sit at some classes for Auror training.

He'd been a prisoner for ten years, almost eleven. The familiar act of sitting down, listening to lectures and reading from too dry books was an effective distraction.

When that didn't work, there was always his first love. Pranks. Unfortunately for him, Yuusuke, Genkai, Michiko, Kurama, and Hiei had no problem pranking him back without mercy.

"No, it's perfect," he smiled, "Just nervous I guess."

"About Aiji-chan?" she returned the smile with a warm one of her own, "I understand. If I knew I was going to meet my brother within a few days, I… I don't know how I would react, either."

Sirius grunted but kept his piece. He did not know the full history between Hiei and Yukina, but the lad had kept little Alyssa safe and would've continued on if Dumbledore hadn't upped security at Hogwarts. Bloody old paranoid codger. He had the greatest of timings, he had.

The point was Hiei was a good lad. A bit of a violent sociopath, but a good lad nonetheless. Which is more than can be said about Bella, or Cissa, or Lucy, or almost anyone in Sirius' family.

"Well, at least it's soup, so I won't be throwing up chunks," he barked a laugh.

"Don't worry, Aiji-chan's one of the nicest girls I've ever met," Yukina said, "She's a violent maniac, yes, but a great girl."

"I believe that," at this point, Sirius couldn't be arsed to be shocked. Azkaban did a good job at desensitizing him, almost to the point that he was now socially awkward. Luckily, present company was full of socially awkward, but generally well-meaning individuals. "So, she's a mini Yuusuke?"

"That would be an apt way to describe her," Kurama chuckled as he entered the room.

Sirius grimaced at the vile concoction in the fox's hand. "Now, Sirius, you know you have to take it."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he grumbled in a way that was reminiscent of the Urameshi siblings. Fitting into the family already.

Kurama and Yukina traded smirks, "Well, if you're not interested in eating solid foods, I suppose that means more ramen and soba for us."

That got Sirius to chug down the stomach enabler and wash it down with the rest of the miso soup while taking his daily vitamins. As much as Sirius hated drinking potions of any kind, including those of the non-wizarding variety, he also knew that they were necessary for his health. Just like he knew that, as tedious as it was to take pills everyday, his body had a lot of vitamins and minerals to make up for his time in Azkaban.

"Yo!" Yuusuke bellowed, "Fox-boy, Snow-girl, Pochi! If you guys don't get your asses down here in five minutes, I'm eating all the tanuki soba and shio ramen!"

"So long as he leaves the kitsune soba alone," Kurama said.

Sirius stumbled to his feet and ran to the living room. Yuusuke was going to eat everything on the table unless if he was stopped. And who better to stop him than the dashing Marauder?

Yukina smiled. It was good to see Sirius clowning around with Yuusuke despite the language barrier. It was one of the few times he wasn't depressed or nervous. She just hoped that Aiji-chan's presence would be able to help him.

~!#$%&^(*)_+!~#$%&^(*_)+!#$%^(*_)!~#$%*&_!#$%^(*_+

As much as Aiji was trying to be shocked, which wasn't much, she felt like hitting herself for not yelling out Matsuyama Setsuko's name first.

Well, okay, Setsuko was more of a seller, bounty hunter, and con-artist, so Aiji didn't think that she'd be willing to fork over huge amounts of money for the BAM, but still, the fanboy glint in Kazutoshi's eyes should've clued her in. He only dreamed every night of becoming her valued apprentice and being as good an apparition hunter as her. She suspected that the only reason he didn't drink a sex change potion to become more like Setsuko was because he liked his bits too much. Regardless, he was narcissistic enough that he was certain he would be a goddess incarnate if he did turn into a woman.

Aiji shrugged and devoured half of her baguette sandwich in record time, saving the last bit for later. Daphne was wiping off the crumbs on her face and tossing her empty plastic sandwich bag and other garbage in the compartment rubbish. Months of rooming with Lythiel had given her something resembling responsible and hygienic habits. Sally-Anne was keeping the whole baguette for her flight and Lythiel was following the sensible brunette's approach.

"I'll ring you a few days after we arrive, yeah?" Kazutoshi told Aiji, "Give us a chance to sleep off the jetlag before making any big decisions."

"Hedwig can send any messages to Daphne," Sally-Anne said, "Just phone me in France."

Kazutoshi would be the one to call Sally-Anne. He was the only one that could foot the expensive bill. As much as owls were cheaper, they were a bit on the obvious side after a while. And really, Sally-Anne was much too young for anyone with a sensible mind to assume that Kazutoshi was courting her.

Using owls would be like painting a big red target on the group with neon lights above them saying 'we're up to something very, very devious and possibly illegal.'

It wasn't seconds after they all nodded in agreement that the whistle signaled that they'd arrive at King's Cross. Daphne was pressed against the window glass, eyes scanning for her mummies and sister. Sally-Anne tried to remain unaffected but she too was searching for her father in the large crowd.

"Isn't anyone picking you up?" Lythiel asked.

"Yuusuke-nii and 'ka-san wanted to," Aiji said, "But the price for two way tickets plus one-day lodgings is waaaay too expensive and tiring. Makes more sense if I get a one-way to Japan and meet up with the folks at the airport."

Kazutoshi nodded with a sympathetic grimace.

The train doors opened and a sea of tweens and teens stampeded out the doors, luggage in tow, reaching for their parents and freedom from the institution known as school.

Daphne let out a garbled squeal and disappeared to the mob, clear destination in mind as her inner sister radar began beeping.

"Ri-Ri!" she shrieked, grabbed her sister and spun her around in the air.

"Daff, put me down!" Asteria laughed nonetheless.

"Didja miss me, sweetie," Daphne crooned, "I know I missed you!"

"Is she talking to her sister or her pet?" Aiji asked.

Lythiel shrugged with a smile.

"Hey Lythiel," Asteria waved to her sister's best friend.

"Long time no see," Lythiel smiled.

"You remember Sally-Anne from the Samhain parties?" Daphne said.

"The sane Greengrass, right?" Sally-Anne smirked.

"The bookie, right?" Asteria said.

They both snorted in amusement.

"And this," Daphne said, "Is our resident violent, gender-confused maniac—"

"Alyssa Potter!" Asteria's eyes widened, getting a starstruck shine when they landed on Aiji's uncovered scar.

"Yep," Aiji drawled.

Asteria poked at Aiji's stomach with the lack of self-consciousness of a small child. The firm muscles caused her finger to bounce. "Thought you'd be taller."

"You'n me both, mate."

"Is it true that you threw Millicent Bulstrode across the room?" Asteria kept the starry gaze fixed on her idol.

"Which time?"

"That was true?" Asteria slowly grinned, "I thought that was just Daphne exaggerating her new friend's coolness. Especially since I admire you a lot and she wouldn't want to disappoint me."

Sally-Anne whistled, "Pretty perceptive for a nine-year-old."

"Or Daff's too predictable," Aiji said.

"A little of both I think," Lythiel said. "Hey!" Daphne pouted.

"Listen kiddo," Aiji said, "I'd love to give a demonstration, but I kinda like not going to juvie. Savvy?"

"Fut, not fair," Asteria turned to Daphne, "How come you get to see all the cool stuff?"

"In two years' time, you'll get to watch all the free entertainment you want," Daphne said, "Bulstrode and Parkinson are like two really stupid trained monkeys that don't even know they're dancing to the organ."

"Stop insulting the monkeys, they never did anything to you," Zoë Greengrass said as soon as she got near her daughter. She was a blonde haired woman with a mauve headband that had a rose of the same color near her ear. It should've looked childish on her, but it gave her an air sophistication that complimented her azure robe and dress.

"Right, sorry mum," Daphne blushed after giving her two mums a bear hug Greengrass style, "These are Sally-Anne and Aiji."

"Finally," Antianara Greengrass said, "I get to meet the child who finally stood up to the royal jarheads."

The families near them shuddered as an unholy alliance between Greengrass family and Aiji Urameshi was born.

~!#$%&()_~!#$%^&*()_+~!#$%^(*_)+~!#$%*&_)(+~!#$%^(*_)+

Lythiel decided that she hated airplanes. She hated the narrow passageways with the uncomfortable gray chairs lined up methodically at the sides and the middle. She hated the stench of bad coffee and badly cooked packaged food that permeated the air. She hated sleeping upright and needing to maneuver with Aiji to sleep somewhat comfortably at her side with Aiji's face near her feet. She hated the groggy feeling in her limbs after she tried to stand up. She hated feeling tired even though she'd almost slept the whole ride.

In short, she abhorred planes.

Aiji grunted in sympathetic hatred as they trudged through immigration. Aiji had to wait for Lythiel to pass, since as a visitor, the line was longer and the service seemed to be slower. It didn't help that as it was holiday time, there were a bit too many tourists who'd decided it'd be nice to spend the hols in Japan.

As much as Aiji was sure the service sector of her country appreciated the patronage, right now all she wanted was to go home, hug her family, and sleep on the nearest fluffy surface. And if anyone ever accused her of thinking like a softie, she'd tear their heads off their shoulders.

They stopped by a store and bought some takoyaki. They hadn't been able to stomach anything while on the plane, the sandwiches Kazutoshi had given them had long since been devoured before the plane took off.

Despite everything, Aiji perked up little by little as they neared the exit. They'd lost Kazutoshi since he'd flown first class, the lucky bastard. He'd taken them to the airport by cab, insisting that he would feel like the lowest of cads if he let two eleven-year-olds unfamiliar with London get there on their own by bus or tube, and had kept them company until it was time to board.

He'd called Aiji and told her that he'd met with his father and had asked if they wanted to find him until they found Aiji's family. They'd declined, but thanked him for the help and promised to call later.

"I can't believe he's had to do this for years," Lythiel said.

"We were in economy, Ly," Aiji said, "Trust me, there's a difference."

After a long journey to the exit and maneuvering around the mob, the girls were groggily making their way to the airport terminal. Lythiel took a break to drink the last bit of Pepper Up Potion in her last flask. She didn't know how Aiji was mostly functional and awake, but whatever she did Lythiel wanted to know. The last thing she wanted to do was make a bad impression on her friend's family by falling asleep without so much as a by your leave.

Aiji grabbed Lythiel's wrist to avoid getting lost in the sea of people and scanned the area for her brother. She couldn't rely on scent, though she knew his better than her own, since the mixed personal odors of the flyers along with sickness, vomit, plane food, stale coffee, terminal stands, cigarette smoke, and tiredness almost knocked her out like the first time she came to London. Closing her eyes, she expanded her reiki to seek Yuusuke's familiar, ferocious, and warm aura.

Her eyes snapped open and she began rushing to her brother. She caught sight of his gelled back hair and messy white tee and jeans ensemble and broke into a smile.

"Yuusuke-nii!"

"Aiji-chan!"

… And the moment was ruined when Yuusuke caught Aiji in a headlock and gave her a noogie despite her bodily protests.

Come on, did anyone really expect a Hallmark moment with those two?

~!#$^*&)(~!#$&^)_~!#%&(*_)+~!#%*()_~!#%&(*)_~!#$&()

Had Lythiel been awake, she would have been appalled at herself for falling asleep not even ten minutes after entering the muggle transportation called a "subway." She'd managed to remain awake for the exuberant introduction to Aiji's infamous big brother and the 60-minute kaisoku (rapid train, she translated to herself) ride to Tokyo Station. Alright, so maybe she dozed off with her eyes open a bit for that… but no one noticed so she wasn't being rude to her hosts!

As it was, the 8 hour difference between Japan and the UK was throwing her body off course on top of the tiresome trip. She didn't even pay attention to where Yuusuke lead them in the metro station; she just blindly followed his lead, thankful that he was strong enough to carry both girls' luggages, and dreamed of a nice warm vertical surface to sleep in. The rumbling moving vehicle created pleasant reverberations to the battered girls' bodies, rocking them to a blissful sleep.

Most of the passengers weren't familiar with the deadly punk Urameshi from Sarayashiki high. Or if they were, they knew him by name and reputation. Some of the older women even smiled and cooed at the cute picture of the protective big brother letting his sister and her blonde (foreign?) friend use him as a pillow. No way was this sweet boy-man the terrifying hellspawn that made it a hobby to brutalize gangs that pissed him off.

And that was why a certain extortionist all of a sudden got a nice big smirk on his face when he saw the puppy-dog-eyed teenager with his kid sisters.

'Target locked,' Mikage the extortionist thought to himself. 'Foreigners are always the best suckers.'

He hefted up a superficially expensive looking vase, although to a careful eye the vase was barely worth the pottery and the paint used to create it. It was barely held together from all the times it's been broken and reconstructed.

It was the perfect tool for an extortionist because of its fragility. All Mikage had to do was scrape it against a wall and it would break apart. Add a panicked, gullible, tired, generally good-willed victim and Mikage got away with more money than he knows what to do with.

Yuusuke noticed the way that too well-dressed man was eyeing him. The suit didn't hide the fact that the man didn't step a foot near an office or a gallery. Yuusuke growled, annoyed that some idiot was attempting to ruin Aiji's return home. He took a quick glance at the next stop and decided to change trains.

If the moron decided to push his luck, Yuusuke would just have to finish the confrontation.

Aiji groaned and grumbled when she realized they weren't even close to home. Lythiel didn't even have the energy to glare, she just followed the Urameshi siblings like a zombie puppy.

Mikage waited for the trio to leave from the underground train to a populated street, but they just waited for the next train. His eyes narrowed when he noted that they were waiting for another local train. 'Are they onto me?' Mikage frowned. He smirked when he noted the morning rush of people coming to the train station. 'With enough people around, they'll have to compensate me.'

Mikage stomped over to Yuusuke and collided his shoulder with Yuusuke's. The vase fell on the dirty subway floor. Yuusuke didn't budge from his spot.

Mikage put on a practiced angered mask, "My vase! You—"

"Watch where you're walking, asshole!" Yuusuke bellowed while placing Aiji and Lythiel behind him, "Didn't you see me holding onto my kid sister and her friend? What if we'd been closer to the edge instead of the center of the platform, huh?"

A crowd began to form between them.

"You walked into me," Mikage tried to turn the conversation around, "My—"

"You're the one who bumped into nii-chan," Aiji growled, "Don't blame him for your own clumsiness. Next time, try to kill yourself instead of someone else."

Lythiel nervously picked up a piece of the broken vase that landed on her shoe, unsure how to proceed.

"He broke my vase," Mikage said, "My very expensive, one of a kind Imari vase! I demand compensation!"

Lythiel frowned at the piece she held in her hand. The breaking points felt odd, almost old. She surreptitiously picked up another fallen piece.

"It's called self-responsibility, teme," Aiji said, "if you didn't want your ugly vase broken you shouldn't have bumped into nii-chan and broken it, ahou!"

"For an important vase, its been broken and reset a little too often, don't you think," Lythiel said while holding the pieces together. They fit like a well-loved puzzle.

"Word of advice, yaro," Yuusuke said, "If you feel like extorting someone, don't do it at such a dangerous place, during rush hour, and at someone who knows he's being targeted."

Aiji grabbed Mikage by the collar and forced him down to her eye-level, "The security camera will show us standing still and you purposefully bumping into us."

"This is an obvious example of a badly executed crime," Lythiel said, "It's rather insulting to our intelligence."

Mikage felt a drop of cold sweat fall down his face. The crowd that didn't leave for their jobs accused him with their collective gaze. He was sure he heard someone calling for security.

Aiji and Yuusuke grinned at him, "So~"

"You thought you could pull a fast one on us," Aiji began.

"Too bad for you," Yuusuke continued, "our ka-san raised no merciful fools."

"What d'ya think, Yuu-chan?" Aiji said, "He almost killed us and he tried to steal our money. Think a kidney's enough compensation for our troubles?"

"He only needs one," Yuusuke said, "That's worth a college semester, at least."

Lythiel now understood why no one ever tried to pull a fast one on her friend.

~!#$^*&()_~!$^*()_~!#%&^(*_)~!#$%^*)_~!$^*)(_~!#$%&()_~!#$^

"NANDA YO!"

"Louder, Ai-chan," Yuusuke said, "I don't think the whole neighborhood heard you."

"Urame- I mean, Yuusuke-san," Lythiel sputtered, "How, I mean, the Ministry—" she stopped and actually thought about what she was about to say, "Nevermind, Fudge and Crouch _were_ a part of the investigation."

"How does your government survive with those morons in charge?" Yuusuke asked.

"I ask myself that question everyday," Lythiel said.

"So, wait, let me get this straight," Aiji said, "Black Sirius is innocent, Pettigrew Peter is a rat, you busted in and out of Azkaban, and now the old hag is housing a convict?"

Yuusuke nodded while lazily smoking a cigarette.

"Dammit, how come you get all the fun cases!" Aiji threw a pillow at him.

"The privilege of being the eldest, Ai-chan~"

"With a matching numerical IQ."

"Like brother, like sister."

"Hey!"

"I get 20 percent profit on the mirror."

"What! I stole it fair and square!"

"And I'm the one paying for the apartment we're living in~"

A sober Atsuko turned to Lythiel, "I suggest you take a bed while they're distracted."

"'Ka-san~!" Aiji and Yuusuke pelted Atsuko with pillows.

"You snooze you lose, gaki!" Atsuko grinned, "It's only for one night."

Aiji grabbed Lythiel and ran for her shared bedroom with Yuusuke, "We get the beds!"

"Hey! Get back here," Yuusuke chased after them.

Lythiel laughed even as her tired body and overwhelmed mind protested against the too much energized movements.

'So, this is what a family feels like.'

~!#$%&(*)_~!#$&^(*_)~!#$&^(*_+~!#$^*)(_+~!#$^(*_)

Sirius wasn't sure what to expect from Aiji. A punch for abandoning her? A hug in a rare fond remembrance from infancy? Awkward silence? The third one seemed most likely.

What did you say to a godfather framed for killing your parents and sentenced to life while leaving you to the tender (snort) mercies of irredeemable cockroaches?

Aiji just took one good look at him and said in English, /Looking pretty spry for a prison escapee. Either Keiko-nee and the gang have been mothering you to death or the movies are not as glamed up as I thought./

Yuusuke laughed and waved off Sirius' inchoate stammering. Lythiel still hadn't quite recovered from the morning dash from the apartment and escaping the rent-demanding landlady. She had a feeling that her face was similar to Black's, looking like she'd been slapped silly by a plastic soda bottle.

Atsuko stole Sirius' Sapporo from his hand and drank the last gulp, "I prefer Kirin."

"And that was my beer!" Sirius grouched in his hard learned Japanese, "Bring your own!"

"As if my cheapskate boss would give me a discount," Atsuko said.

"Probably cause the bartender's not supposed to drink all the alcohol," Aiji said.

"It's only a sip or two," Atsuko playfully swatted Aiji.

"Just checking for poison, I know," Yuusuke said.

Lythiel awkwardly came up to Sirius and decided that an English introduction would be less complicated, /Pleasure to meet you Mister Black. I'm Lythiel Moon, Aiji's friend. Pleased to make your acquaintance./

Sirius looked at her hand as if he'd never seen such a strange custom but shook it, the tactile contact a shock to his mostly touch-deprived skin. /No need to be so formal, lass. You must be pretty special if Aiji's brought you here,/ Sirius smiled, /Besides, Mister Black is my father, may the insensitive bastard rest in a mop bucket./

/Not even giving him the dignity of burning in Hell?/ Kurama said as he came out of Genkai's temple to great the Urameshi family.

Sirius felt a twinge of envy when Aiji didn't hesitate to hug Kurama, Hiei, or Yukina. Even the barbs she traded with Genkai didn't stop the bitterness from welling up within him. 'So much lost time,' he thought. His chest lightened when she grinned at him and tugged both him and Lythiel inside the temple.

"C'mon, I smell food and baba won't leave us any if we let her," Aiji said.

It was good to be home.

~!#$^&(*)~!$^*)(_~!#%^*)~!#^*)(

Dumbledore lightly twirled the sweet Darjeeling tea in its delicate butterfly themed porcelain cup. It was funny how all of a sudden he was noticing all of these little insignificant details he never had the time to notice. Like how his beard would softly swish side to side as he walked. Perhaps he should invest in a thong or a band to keep it secured. Or maybe he should just leave it, the downy wisps were rather pleasant to the touch and it added a gentle and absentminded look to his character.

"So, Albus dearest," Perenelle Flamel said, "Are you certain everything is alright at Hogwarts?"

Her very famous husband just continued pottering about in the kitchen. The delicious smell of roast chicken with sherry sauce and onion slices sneaked into the living room and filled Albus and Perenelle's nostrils. Albus tried to shoo away the idea that Nicholas was threatening to roast _him_.

"Everything is as it should be, my dear," Albus twinkled his pretty blue eyes, "Not that I'm not happy to be here, but there was no need for a personal inspection of whatever you two think is wrong. Certainly, keeping the Black incident under wraps has been taxing, but it's nothing too serious… unless if you discount Cornelius panicking and Dolores pointing fingers away from him. And Rita, dear Rita Skeeter is a whole category on herself."

"For one, you're being blunt," Perenelle said, "Or as blunt as you will ever be. Second, there's been a sense of urgency in your letters since November. So why don't you stop insulting our intelligence and tell us what mosquito has bitten you so we can swat it to death already."

"As I said Perenelle, nothing is wrong," Albus said, "My sense of urgency merely stems from how young Alyssa is so different than expected."

"Probably for the best," Perenelle muttered, "To be perfectly honest, I was certain that you just had enough of Wizarding Britain and wanted to raise a Dark Lady to finish the job."

"Now, now, Perenelle, our world has its problems, I won't deny it, but it's not irredeemable yet."

"Then explain to me, slowly, why you thought it was a good idea to send the girl to magic-hating relatives?" Perenelle said, "That's the number one foolproof plan for creating muggle-haters you know."

"They were not my first choice," Albus said, "If it weren't for the protection they could have provided, I wouldn't even have considered them as guardians for any child."

"That bad?"

"I would have trusted the Malfoys with young Alyssa's care before I even contemplated letting the Dursleys look after her for a night," Albus admitted with a sigh.

"And despite your misgivings you still went through with it?" Perenelle shook her head, 'Maybe it's time to retire, old boy.'

"Perenelle, if it weren't for Maelle Vaval and her Abortionists, we'd still be fighting against the Pureblood Selected Marriage and Conception laws," Albus looked at her in the eye, "Obviously people can't be trusted to make their own decisions."

"Stop trying to save an ungrateful world," Perenelle said, "That's what idiots like Grindelwald and Riddle tried to do, misguided and insane as they were… or are in Riddle's case."

"Old habits are hard to break, my dear."

"Just like it's hard for you to be one hundred percent honest with anyone, even your closest friends," she said, "Now why don't you stop buggering about and tell us what happened. Your evasiveness is making me twitchy."

"Now, now, love," Nicholas said as he levitated the roast chicken to the living room, "No need to get nervous. It's not as though Albus has lost the stone."

Ora, ora, you came in late Stone Silence! We're already at nineteen pages into this chapter.

"YOU LOST THE STONE!"

"Perenelle, that isn't— put that down, don't!"

"Love, please watch out for the china."

~#$&^(*_)+!#$(*&_+~!#$%^*_)!~#$%(*_

Aiji took back any and all teasing remarks she made about Kazutoshi's obsession about all things Matsuyama Setsuko. She was pretty damn sure she was sporting a similar stupid cow face when she was presented to Tatsumiya Michiko, AKA Seme-uke Ume.

"EH! No fair, nii-chan! How come you get to work with Ume-sama and I don't?"

"The same reason you have magic and I don't. World's unfair," Yuusuke smirked.

"Cool older brothers aren't supposed to be petty," Aiji blew him a raspberry and lowered her lower eyelid with her middle finger.

"And you aren't?"

"Teme."

"Gaki."

"Ass face."

"Flat board."

"Fox molester!"

"Donkey's whore!"

Lythiel ignored the squabbling pair even as they were rolling around the ground pulling each other's cheeks. She was too busy being starry-eyed but denying it to everyone, "Yuusuke-kun modeled for you?"

Michiko smirked, "Puppy-eyes was a well of inspiration alright."

Sirius had only managed to read the first volume of _Cat Boy Ayumu _before passing out with a nosebleed. Hey, the man hasn't seen any action for a decade, give him a break!

"So that's where you've been getting the money!"

"We're not all lucky enough to have our rich long lost parents' inheritance drop on our laps!"

Michiko preened at the fighting. Sipping her sweet green tea, she began talking to herself as… wait, where did those peonies come from?

"Such a sad fate, to have all these beautiful men and women fighting over my art," she theatrically sipped from her tea, "Oh, but it brings me such joy to know that I have such a powerful impact on my loyal fans."

Lythiel all of a sudden had a vision of an older Daphne replacing Michiko.

Hiei curiously perused _My Pirate Concubine_ volume 30. "Fox, I didn't know you were screwing the detective."

"I wish," Kurama muttered.

'**Ditto**,' Youko said.

"You could always trick him into a date," Sirius said, "That's what James did to Lily."

Kurama glared at him, "I _do_ have my pride, Sirius. Give me some credit, that's Plan L."

Sirius and Hiei blinked, "Do you have a Plan Z?"

"Yes, Amortentia combined with Ran no Chichi."

Sirius turned to Hiei, "A love potion with a demonic aphrodisiac? Bit overkill don't you think?"

"Yuusuke is that dense," Hiei said.

Michiko smirked, "In fact, why don't foxy and puppy give us a demonstration for our next session?"

"Isn't it enough that you've been peeping at us in the baths?"

Genkai bopped Yuusuke's head, "Stop complaining and get to it, dimwit."

Yep, an unholy alliance between Genkai and Michiko had been formed. Why? Michiko lived for sex and yaoi. Genkai just wanted her idiot student to get with the program and shag the fox already. Even if he was a dimwit, he still deserved some measure of happiness.

If pimping the idiot to the nympho was what it took for the proverbial light bulb to flash, then she'd pimp the dimwit to the nympho.

"Yeah, nii-chan, think of it as holiday overtime," Aiji said.

"At least wipe the drool off your face, Ai-chan," Keiko left her gossiping with the girls to wipe Aiji's face with a handkerchief.

"I would be very interested in viewing the artistic process as well," Lythiel said. She was very proud that she'd refrained from squealing.

"At least Ly-chan's not drooling," Yuusuke said.

"Barely," Sirius laughed.

"Oh, Yuu-chan~" Atsuko gushed, "Wear this for 'ka-san."

She held, of all things, a man-thong, bitch boots, and a spiked collar.

"Bring in the money, nii-chan!"

"Et tu, Aiji!"

"Now, now, Yuusuke," Kurama purred, "It never hurts to take one for the team."

He nuzzled Yuusuke's ear and nosed down to Yuusuke's neck. Kurama sniffed the musky scent of his leader, inwardly purring at Yuusuke melting to the olfactory affection.

"Think of the extra cash," Kurama said, "The fresh smell of bills as they fan your face when you count them too fast."

No one was too sure if Yuusuke was a groaning mess because of greed or lust. Kurama's hands weren't stagnant, rubbing and caressing Yuusuke's sensitive mouth and his hard chest muscles over fabric.

Lythiel licked her lips and tasted blood. She swiped a hand over her upper lip and noted she'd experienced her first ever nosebleed.

Everyone but Hiei and Yukina had a nosebleed. And Kuwabara, but he didn't count since he'd escaped to the bathroom the second he saw the living room fill up with the lustful purple aura he associated with sex.

Aiji grinned at the furiously drawing Michiko. "Yeah, that's it onii-chan, just a little lower…" Michiko drooled.

"At least now there's some progress," Aiji whispered to Hiei.

"Aiji, your nosebleed," Hiei said.

"What? Even if it's with nii-chan, he's still Kurama the Seducer, with capital S."

"So you don't suffer from a brother-complex?" Lythiel said.

"You think so too?" Hiei asked.

"What, no I don't! I just want to be like nii-chan!"

"Sure, of course Aiji," Keiko smiled. She wasn't going to bother to mention how Aiji had terrorized some of the boys and girls she'd deemed unworthy of her brother. Those were minor details, after all.

"'Rama," Yuusuke grabbed Kurama's wandering hand and brushed his forehead with Kurama's. They were close, so close, all that was separating their lips were a few inches and…

RING! RING! RIIIIIIING!

The nearest person to the phone inched close and answered with all of the ingrained manners of a good Japanese citizen. That person was Aiji.

"SOMEONE BETTER BE DYING, TEME! WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, CALLING AT A TIME LIKE THIS!"

While Kazutoshi was scratching his head, wondering what he did to warrant Aiji's wrath, Kiku the bribable ferry girl breathed a sigh of relief.

~!#$&)(_+~!#$*&_)+!#$%^(*_)

Matsuyama Setsuko struggled to keep her laughter from leaving her throat. Kiku hid behind her partner and cowered at her back any time someone from the Urameshi gang glared at her. She knew that it had been wrong of her to interrupt but come on! Her holiday in New Zealand was at stake!

Sadly, Setsuko did not sympathize so much with the holy mission (read: bribe) she'd been given.

Botan smiled, it was one of her rare fake smiles she often employed when she had seen something unforgivable happen and it was within her power to either rectify it or, better, garrote the idiot responsible for the mess. Kiku did not fancy being around her for the next soporific ferry debrief.

Kazutoshi, bless him, was the only one 100 percent oblivious to the murderous atmosphere. He didn't notice the way that Aiji's hands inched close to his neck, only to be slapped away by an equally incensed Keiko.

"Matsuyama Setsuko-sama," Kazutoshi gushed, hearts in his black eyes, "It's such an honor."

Setsuko smiled, "The honor's all mine, Shinmei-kun. I never thought I'd ever see the Mirror of Erised ever since the centaurs had their hissy fit."

There was something scarily refreshing about a person flippant enough to describe the centaurs' rather tumultuous discord with the English Ministry of Magic – a discord that caused the centaurs to withdraw themselves and their magical artifacts from human conflicts and daily life – as a simple "hissy fit."

"Yes, of course," Kazutoshi gushed like the fanboy that he was, "It's a remarkable piece of craftsmanship. The specific runes and the careful arithmancy behind the magic are unlike anything I've ever seen before, even while working under Koenma-sama, at that."

Setsuko nodded and hummed, looking at the mirror. It didn't reflect a sea-green haired woman in a metal plate bikini top and leather trousers with combat boots as most mirrors were wont to do. Setsuko's cheshire grin faltered for a second.

"Something the matter?" Kurama asked.

"There's something else in here," Setsuko said.

"Huh?"

"What?"

"Since when?" Yuusuke and Aiji sputtered.

Kiku tilted her head to the side and snorted when she found what Setsuko was looking at, "How could you miss _that_?"

"What?" Lythiel demanded, feeling rather affronted.

Setsuko grinned and reached into her trouser pocket. It was tight enough that no one could doubt that she was a woman, it was a wonder anything fit into the pockets.

Not five seconds later, Lythiel, Sirius, Kurama, Botan, Michiko, and Kazutoshi were gaping like fishes out of water. Even Genkai looked like she was going to gas everyone from shock.

"Dude," Yuusuke said, "How'd you fit that ruby in those pants?"

And of course, everyone that knew what "that ruby" was facevaulted.

Setsuko made a speedy recovery for someone not used to anything Urameshi, "It's not just a ruby, you dingbat! Can't you see that it's too dark a red to be a fucking ruby? I mean, it doesn't have chromium, so the stone's red color doesn't come from what is found in normal precious stones. And it's darker than pigeon blood-red rubies at that!"

"Um," Aiji said, "So it's not a ruby?"

Setsuko reacted as though she'd been insulted, "Of course it's not a ruby! Didn't I just explain it? Can't you bogtrodding bastards tell that this is a powerful magical artifact? Here, see, the magical lay lines on the top-most right are rust gold and intertwined with symbols of Pluto, or Hades if you prefer, and Cerberus. These form into an oval sort of circle that travels from the upper right to the lower left. Now the other lay lines—"

Aiji and Yuusuke didn't mean to tune her out, they really didn't. But when she started talking rune-lingo, she absolutely lost them. Whatever. Lythiel or ba-chan or Sirius could explain it to them.

Everyone was listening to Setsuko as though she had discovered the secrets of the universe. Even Hiei, who wore his "I'm puzzled by what you are saying but won't let you know and am trying to figure out what you are trying to convey" face, was paying close attention to each word out of the chain wielding woman.

"Say," Yuusuke said, "Can you put it in layman's terms?"

Lythiel went from scholarly salivating to glaring in a flash. Kazutoshi sighed, but conceded, "Yuusuke-san, Aiji-kun, that's the _Philosopher's Stone_."

"So?" the Urameshi sibling glanced at each other and shrugged. Who cared about a stone that philosophized? Although, if it started talking, they could make a living out of it—

"ITAI!" they clutched their heads in pain. Genkai readied her fist for another round, "Not that kind of stone, dimwits. It's a magical stone that can make the elixir of life."

"Elixir of life?" Yuusuke asked, "Like that potion that can make you immortal?"

Sirius nodded, "Not only that, but it supposedly can bring someone back to perfect health even if they were on the brink of death. Just as effective as unicorn blood, only without the consequences."

Setsuko nodded to show that he was right, "I can't believe it, the Philosopher's Stone, and it only took five brattlings and one teenager to get it… Where the effing hell did you get it?"

Kazutoshi answered his idol, "At the basement below the third floor corridor at Hogwarts."

Aiji snorted, "No wonder the old man acted like ants were on his ass."

Michiko scratched her chin, "Either Albus has gone senile or he's a crafty little bastard who's bitten off more than he can chew."

"Verdict?" Kiku asked.

"The latter," Michiko and Sirius said.

"But still," Lythiel frowned, "He was all but handing in a formal invitation for someone to steal it. He warned everyone _not_ to step foot near that place."

"In a school full of children," Botan said, "That's just asking for a troublemaker to go out of spite."

"Why're you looking at me for?" Yuusuke said.

"Regardless," Setsuko said, "I can't just leave things as it is, the Stone changes the deal."

"Indeed," Kurama's lips quirked, "Especially considering that its secondary power is to _permanently_ transform any metal into gold."

And he scores!

"So," Yuusuke snatched the stone with quicksilver demon reflexes, though Setsuko almost kept it by a margin, "Since we're here to only talk business about the mirror, why don't we get it outta the way?"

"Yeah," Aiji sidled next to Setsuko and clapped a hard hand on her shoulder, "We'll even give you a discount since you found a glitch in the system. So, how does fifty thousand galleons sound?"

"Say what? The Stone came with the mirror, so it's a part of the bargain!"

Chaos made itself at home in Genkai's Temple, again.

~!#$%^*&)(_~!#$%^(*_)~!#$%(*_+~!#$%*&_)~!$%*&_+~!#$&()_

Negotiations over the Stone's price were not, in any sense of the word, pithy. So, of course, Yuusuke and Aiji used the extended time to produce as much gold while they could. Lythiel immediately got into their little business and saved up some piles of the precious metal for Sally-Anne and Daphne.

Sally-Anne had been most loquacious over the matter of even spoil reaping. Although, really, she wasn't as noble as that, she just knew that if she asked she wouldn't get the largest bounty of all so she settled with even portions.

Kazutoshi, the traitor, had turned into a puddle of goo every time Setsuko took out the chain coiled around her hair and snapped it. Lythiel and Aiji go into the habit of carrying a camera whenever there was the slightest chance they could meet up with the prefect.

It was Sirius, funnily enough, who kept the debate from tipping in Setsuko's favor. He'd learned a bit from his neighbor of six years who was a corrupt lawyer for well-known Death Eaters (Evan Rosier and Thorfinn Rowle came to mind). Poor chap broke not even a month in captivity and started speaking justice lingo at the oddest moments.

It was amusing and distracted the more lucid prisoners from their own torment.

Eventually, Kurama intervened and everyone managed to agree on two things:

No one wanted any Ministry or Country to gain such a powerful tool. The results of that lovely picture: apocalyptic.

No one, not even someone as good at getting lost on the radar as Setsuko or Hiei, was safe with such a one of a kind artifact on their persons. There was no need to make unnecessary enemies of people who've discovered the formula for cheating Death.

"So," Sirius frowned, "Any proposals?"

"No thanks, Pochi," Yuusuke said, "Not ready for marriage."

"Says you," Aiji said, "Don't listen to what he says, Pochi. Keep the wedding kimono on reserve."

"And here I went and thought it was for you," Sirius smirked at his lovely goddaughter, "Eh, can't tell the difference these days."

Michiko frowned then took out her sketching pad and started illustrating, grinning the more detailed it became. Yuusuke groaned, for once not comforted by Kurama's lecherous leer.

"Oh, no, no, no, no," Yuusuke cried, "I draw the line at crossdressing."

"Not in the contract," Michiko sing-songed.

Sirius shook his head, "Do that and Yuusuke's virtue is in danger."

"What virtue?" Hiei sorted.

"Not listening, lalalalalala," Kazuma ran around with his hands covering his ears.

"He's still a virgin!" Keiko cried and ignored Yuusuke's mortified "KEIKO!" "We didn't do anything of the sort! And, and, anyway, Yuusuke's not the type to cheat or have one night stands!"

Setsuko patted Yuusuke's shoulder; his flush had traveled all over his neck and ears, steam rolling from them. "Don't worry kid, nothing wrong with sixteen year old virgins. It's when they're forty that you have to worry."

Yuusuke wished that the ground would swallow him already. Or at least some lightning god or goddess would show him some pity and strike him down.

Aiji crawled over to Yuusuke's lap, all of a sudden as affectionate as a puppy. "Don't worry nii-chan. I'll always love you, even if your stubborn pride and idiocy make you into a 40-year-old virgin."

"Thanks, Ai," Yuusuke said dryly, though he accepted the backhanded love, "And I'll always love you, even if you don't find a brave soul to put up with you."

Lythiel giggled, "That's true love, right there."

"Indeed," teary-eyed Kazutoshi said, "My own sister told me she would either give me a sex-change or kill me and take over the company when I was twelve."

"Uh," Yuusuke and Aiji sweatdropped, "Sempai?"

"She's still scorned about being overlooked as the company heir," Kazutoshi said despondently, "It's not my fault I was born with a cock and she wasn't!"

"Oh shit," Kazuma guiltily slapped his head.

Shizuru sniffed the cup of soda he's been drinking, "Dude, there's barely enough alcohol for cough drops in here."

Yuusuke guffawed and high-fived his sister and Lythiel on a job well done. Kazuma scratched his head with a furious blush that clashed with his carrot top mop.

"Two words: Prefect Protection," Aiji grinned while snapping away with her disposable Kodak. She didn't even mind when Keiko bonked her and nii-chan and Kazuma on the head.

"He's a dejected drunk," mused Lythiel, "Who would've guessed?"

"He got drunk on that shitty little bit?" Setsuko snickered, "Lightweight."

"Although you tease me, Setsuko-sama," Kazutoshi cried, "My heart belongs to you, my fierce biker goddess."

Setsuko patted his hands that were holding one of her own prisoner, "Tell me this again when you're sober and older, kiddo. I might be a mega-bitch, but even I don't rob the cradle while the baby's intoxicated."

"Older?"

"That's my rule, no jailbaits," Setsuko shuddered, "Learned my lesson."

"So, so, you're saying if I'm older, _legal_," Kazutoshi breathed, "You'll?"

"Consider the offer," Setsuko said.

Kazutoshi put on his thinking face and nodded, "Soooo, I'll proposition you when I'm 18! Okay, I can live with that!"

No one had the heart to help Kazutoshi regain his memories of when he was tipsy.

On the plus side. He made such a racket that Lythiel used the forced all-nighter to finally finish her O-worthy Charms and Transfiguration papers.

~!#$%&^)(_+~!#$&)(_+~!#$%^_)~!#$&^)_+~!#$%*&_)

As there was no resolution on the Stone dispute, Kiku and Setsuko were invited over Genkai's for Christmas. It was convenient since, while everyone planned to relax, if anyone got a brilliant idea the interested parties were all under the same roof and accessible.

Aiji and Yuusuke, who weren't all that reverential to the gods that loved to cock up their lives for kicks, had asked Lythiel if she wanted to celebrate a more Celtic Yule. She'd blushed at the consideration but declined, she wasn't really all that religious and the holiday meant nothing to her on an emotional level… unless if one counted the bored irritation she felt at the pureblood parties where the only silver lining were the rare times Daphne and Asteria attended.

Even so, dinner wasn't strictly a Japanese Christmas either. Instead of Christmas Chicken, they all ate mizutaki. The chicken-based nabe pot stood proud at the middle of the large kotatsu while everyone took their share – sometimes fighting over it – and ate in their own bowls.

Kiku glared at anyone when she dipped the shungiku in ponzu sauce, daring anyone to make a pun to her name and the chrysanthemum greens. Yuusuke, Setsuko, Sirius, Aiji, and Hiei were fighting over who got the biggest pieces of chicken. Michiko had at least ¾ of the nabe's shiitake mushrooms. Atsuko and Shizuru fought over the remaining negi. Botan and Kazuma kept on stealing everyone else's Chinese cabbage and defending their bounty from Keiko. Genkai, empress of her temple that she was, relegated the use of ponzu sauce in return for the extra soup and tofu. Lythiel and Yukina negotiated hard bargains for those.

Kurama wasn't present at the time, as he celebrated Christmas and other holidays with Shiori, Hatanaka-san, and Shuuichi. Not a big loss for him, since the fox loved chicken and it made his mother happy.

Kazutoshi, likewise, was with his own family down in Tokyo. As much as he complained about his traditionalist parents and his violently ambitious sister, he couldn't fathom not spending important holidays without them.

It was while devouring Christmas Cake – and defending his bit from the bottomless pits, really, no respect for the ex-starved – that Sirius Orion Black had his greatest revelation in ten years.

"Say," he snapped his fingers together, "What would happen if we were to just give it to the Flamels?"

"They'd try to kill us," Hiei said. That's what he would do if someone stole his source of riches and immortality.

"Yes, exactly! Well, not so much the killing part, but they would declare war at the very least."

"Least, he says," Shizuru said wryly. Her hands twitched to give Aiji and Lythiel's hair a trim, they had an inch of dead hair at the tips.

"So, what I was thinking – "Don't hurt yourself" – was what would happen if the rat got a taste of his own medicine?" Sirius smiled an ugly grin. An aura of malevolence with a demonic dog at his back surrounded him, warning others that this man was not to be crossed.

"First we have to find the rat," Hiei snapped.

"Sorry, Sirius," Botan said with sincere regret in her magenta eyes, "But we've tried scouring over our files and there's been no progress."

"What'd you expect? Rats are some of the most resilient invisible little buggers out there," Kiku added her two cents.

Sirius deflated but his vindictive wrath would never be abated until Peter Pettigrew was hung by his toenails, gutted like a fish, and used as shark bait.

"Did anyone check the rats at Hogwarts?" Keiko asked.

Two in a row Stone Silence!

"Huh?" Botan spat out her cake.

"Well," Keiko frowned, "It said on the school letter that the normal pets allowed are toads, owls, and _rats_."

Atsuko dropped her sake bottle, stone cold sober, "If I was the asshole and wanted to stay on the loop, that sounds like the ideal place to be."

"He'd be safe," Setsuko grimaced, "Because he has his own death protecting him and that's the last place on earth anyone would look for him."

"And it's the ideal strategic place to be," Hiei snarled, "He's in the perfect position to spy and attack."

Lythiel snapped her head up, eyes wide. Aiji also had her own eureka.

"What?" Yuusuke growled, ready to turn Hogwarts upside down to find that rat.

Genkai didn't hit him or impede him from doing something foolish. She wasn't a hypocrite. Michiko started calling Kurama and Kazutoshi. Yukina took care of the broken bottle before anyone stepped on the shards of glass, her face frozen.

"Oi, Sirius," Aiji said, "If something happens to the wizard's original body, does that carry over to his Animagus form?"

"You mean you saw a rat with its paw missing?" Sirius leapt in front of her, glee and fear warring in his iron eyes.

"Weasley," Lythiel breathed as though she couldn't believe they'd missed something so obvious.

"Weasley?"

"Ronald Weasley's pet rat," Lythiel clarified, "Hedwig, that is Sally-Anne's owl, she's been trying to eat him for such a long time that we got used to letting him loose in the castle. Maybe the reason she always tried to swallow him is because he's been hanging around the Slytherin area."

"Rats don't generally live for ten years," Aiji whispered, remembering the one time Ron had found the snowy owl about to gorge herself with his beloved pet. He'd railed about how the rat was already old and didn't need his life shortened anymore than it was, thank you very much.

"Shit," Kiku took out her oar from hyperspace and got on it, Botan following five seconds later, "We'll come back in a sec. Don't wait for us!"

They disappeared.

"Soooo," Setsuko started, noticing the heavy atmosphere and the protective energy cackling around the baby of the family, "Now that we know where our fall-guy is, what was the rest of the plan?"

Sirius, Yuusuke, and Atsuko met each others' eyes and showed their teeth. It would take months before the temple regained its normal aura of tranquility.

~!#$%&^)(_~!#$%*&_)~!#%*&)(_~!#$&^)(_~!#$%&(*)~!$^*&(

Peter Pettigrew was a simple man of simple needs. That was what made life as a rat so rewarding. His existence was, in essence, the life of a leech. His day consisted of waking up, shittting, eating, drinking, peeing, napping, and sleeping. Occasionally he kept an ear out over Potter's (he didn't call her by name, even he knew he'd forfeited that right the second he got the mark) shenanigans, but the girl didn't share her secrets in the Common Room and her friends didn't talk openly.

Slytherins.

So, imagine his shock when the next time he opened his beady eyes, he met the face of a devil who'd sworn to drag him down to the deepest level of hell.

"Si-si-si-sirius?" he squeaked much like the animal he lived as. Old habits die hard.

"Peter, old chap. Even if you run, even if you hide, I'll always find the time to HUNT YOUR USELESS ARSE DOWN AND SKIN YOU ALIVE!"

"N-NO! SIRIUS NO!"

"Here squeaky, squeaky, here fucker," Sirius sang, the bloodied whip made out of electrical fences broke the skin and shocked Pettigrew.

Sirius lassoed Peter near him, ignoring the whimpers of agony and the smell of smoking flesh from the constant shocks. He took out a very sharp knife and, without even checking, plunged it in the general area of his groin.

Peter learned that he could, actually, sing soprano.

"OH SHUT UP! Cissa has a bigger pair than you, not much of a loss!"

"RON! PERCY! SOMEONE HELP!"

"Use your eyes, dumbass! We're nowhere near the Weasley home."

Peter, in a rare moment of courage (or desperation, really), attempted to use his healthier body against Sirius' battered one. "Petrificus Totalus!"

Once Peter was securely paralyzed, Sirius took out the knife from its disgusting sheathe and cut at the tender muscles in Peter's pinky fingers.

"What's a few more fingers, eh?"

Peter cried throughout the whole ordeal, the lost function of his pinkies rendered his hands useless. Sirius got tired of the careful ordeal, sheathed the knife, and stood up.

"Now that the boring part's over with," Sirius said and grinned like a madman.

He stomped on Pettigrew, feeling euphoric at every crack and gurgle.

Hiei had to admit, he was impressed by the pinky trick. Without proper function of his hand, the wizard couldn't use a wand and was therefore a sitting duck.

"We don't want him dead, remember?"

Sirius grunted with a last stomp, crushing his heel as though underneath his foot was the world's most disgusting cockroach.

Hiei took off his headband and the Jagan glowed at Pettigrew's direction, working his own demonic magic on the easily impressionable traitor. It was a wonder Voldemort hadn't killed him for insurance.

"Too bad Yuusuke, Atsuko, and Aiji couldn't be here," Sirius sighed, "Their revenge too, in a way."

"The fox too," Hiei corrected, "He'll soon join the pride."

Sirius hummed in agreement and said nothing else, didn't trust himself getting closer to Peter without killing him. It had been hard enough to merely stomp on his breakable bones instead of actually skinning him like he promised, but he didn't want the wizarding public to think him a dangerous animal. He'd known whores with more loyalty than that lot.

"What are you going to say to that malarkey of a justice system when they ask about his state of being," Hiei asked. He tossed the dark, dark red stone at Sirius. He caught it and planted it on Pettigrew's pocket.

Sirius grinned, slow and cold, "You can't expect me to have a civilized chat with a traitor after Azkaban, now can you."

~!~!#$%*&)(_~!#$*&_)~!#$&^)(_+~!#$*&_)+~!#$*&_)

**BLACK INNOCENT! **

**PETTIGREW BETRAYED POTTERS! **

**PETTIGREW STOLE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE, BLACK A HERO! FLAMELS OUTRAGED!**

**MINISTRY SUED FOR BLACK'S WRONGFUL INCARCERATION!**

That picture with Cornelius Fudge on the verge of tears was easily one of Aiji's favorite souvenirs from the whole drama. A close second runner-up was the candid photograph of Bartemius Crouch Senior's expressive "oh shit!" wide-eyed gaping.

Of course, most of the tabloids and journals were concerned with the judicial and big-scale political backlash. Only very few of them bothered to report Sirius and Atsuko's weird joint custody of Aiji or Pochi's decision to indefinitely remain in Japan.

_Knot So Good _(a rare muggleborn-friendly journal with relatively respectful reporters) speculated on the long-term political ramifications on the British pureblood elite due to Black's decision, the financial problems England will face when two of the richest heirs have left the coop, and the powerful statement of choosing to live among muggles over wizarding society.

_The Quibbler_ didn't bother with trying to analyze anything or even tried to remain objective, Xenophilius Lovegood just plowed on about how the Ministry had purposefully allowed Sirius Black to be framed in order for the Girl-Who-Lived to be under their influence and the awful conspiracy was averted thanks to the caring Ms. Urameshi.

The sad thing? _The Quibbler_ was probably telling the truth.

Aiji heard Sally-Anne's snort at her elbow, her friend was cutting off all of the photos of right-winged politicians with their "oh shit!" expressions and keeping them in a scrapbook. Daphne kept some for target practice with her new set of throwing knives.

Yes, you heard right, a new set of knives. Now, the more responsible readers must be asking who was the irresponsible idiot that gave that moody violent maniac sharp throwing projectiles? Give you a hint: she has a scar on her face that she didn't acquire from a brawl she was personally involved in.

Aiji wasn't normally a gift-giver or big on holiday presents. Money was always tight at home and what was miraculously saved was spent on food or rent.

Yuusuke did try to do small loving deeds for her when they were younger, such as accompany her to her favorite park or filch some change for the arcade even when things were less than ideal at home. Aiji always appreciated those gestures at love and the attempt at normalcy from her brother. She reciprocated with taking the blame for minor misdemeanors that most people would let a girl off the hook for and made sure Keiko looked the other way when he did things that she would disapprove.

This system of doing things for loved ones instead of buying things lead for the Urameshi siblings to reserve all their patience and understanding for special occasions. It wasn't unusual for the Yukimura Ramen Stand to all of a sudden be sparkly clean once Yuusuke and Aiji were sure no one saw them sanitizing the place.

Keiko and her parents knew. They just let them think they didn't for the sake of Urameshi pride.

However, in the joyful spirit of capitalism, Aiji had decided that maybe it was okay to ease her fists and actually spend some money on gifts.

… Okay, so she didn't go to a store and bought jewelry or whatever clothes designers deemed temporarily fashionable.

She had gotten friendly with the goblin in charge of her vault via firecalls. Griphook had been absolutely stern and wouldn't let her peer into the family vault until she was seventeen – "yes, not even if your chaperone is almost seventeen. He could be as old as Griselda Marchbanks and you won't set foot in there until you're seventeen." He'd changed his tune when Aiji casually mentioned a way that vertically challenged fighters could toss opponents over their shoulders and beat the stuffing out of them without using magic.

Aiji had looked so guileless when she pointed at Genkai-baba and said that she was looking for ambitious students.

The endless holiday chores were soooo worth the backdoor to her family vault.

Not that Genkai could complain. She made it a point to snipe at Yuusuke and Aiji about how much more diligent Strongcopper Daughter of Griphook was than the both of them combined.

Her gifts came from her vault, because priceless centuries' old heirlooms beat questionable fashion trends any day of the week.

The knives Daphne got belonged to Aiji's many times great-aunt Dymphana Potter. A happy warrior who was considerate enough to divest her beaten opponents of their burdensome lands, castles, servants, lives, and even their horses. It was thanks to her that the Malfoy family didn't become as expansive as the Weasley family and therefore saved many a generation from the extra obnoxiousness from the pale gits. Too bad she missed the last ancestors.

Daphne, of course, had loved them at first sight and had vowed to name her firstborn Dymphana. Malfoy, as if instinctively recognizing the weapons that had slayed many a kin, gave Daphne a wide berth even in the most enclosed of spaces.

Sally-Anne had wept tears of joy at _Ye Olde E__aldorbotl_. From what Aiji had understood from Lythiel's explanations, it was the Wizarding British Version of _The Prince_ – "Only rarer," Lythiel said, "Since you can't find it at any old bookstore."

The priceless quality of the book had appealed to Sally-Anne's materialistic side and the content whetted her Machiavellian palate.

Of course, ever the scholar, Lythiel had devoured the book before it was never seen outside Sally-Anne's clutched hands.

Kazutoshi and Aiji had opted for simple and exchanged weapons. She'd given him an old sword resistant to fire spells from another warrior ancestor, this time a many times great grandmother named Claefer Dunn. Kazutoshi had emptied his pockets and gotten her a pair of ki and magical adapting sai, forged personally by Setsuko at a discount price.

None of her friends had such an emotional reaction to their gifts as Lythiel. The holiday away from the dreary Moon estates and her bastard of a father had been the best present she could have asked for. But Aiji had just topped herself. She'd given Lythiel a spare key to her apartment. Open door policy.

Lythiel has stilled, gazing at the steel gadget blankly, as though she couldn't believe something was in front of her face, then she swept Aiji into a tight hug and buried her face in her shoulder.

Of course, the rest didn't get any tangible presents. Aiji and Yuusuke merely continued the tradition of letting their actions mean more than bought trinkets. A tradition that would be extended to Daphne, Sally-Anne, Lythiel, and Kazutoshi. After all the gifted family heirlooms and letting your friend crash in for however long she wanted, the quartet felt that the gifts were extravagant and thoughtful enough to last them decades' worth of holidays and birthdays.

Sirius hadn't needed any gifts. The Urameshi family had surprised him when, not even an hour into being declared a free man, Aiji thrusted a very legal and binding form into his shaky hands. It was a joint-custody agreement, wherein Sirius would have the same custody over Aiji as if he were married to Atsuko. Likewise, Sirius had the dubious honor of lawfully having parental rights over Yuusuke for the next two years until he became a legal adult.

Sirius hadn't cried then, but he came close from the trembling Aiji had felt in her used-to-it-by-now shoulder.

Suffice to say, Yule in Japan had been a success.

Aiji brushed off the lint on her handmade green sweater. It was a joint present from Daphne and her mama Zoë. Daphne had chosen the color and the white tiger design at the front and mama Zoë had knitted it with her eldest as her personal helper. Though she had a green thumb and an amazing knack for potions, Daphne was not as proficient with knitting or even crocheting.

It was Aiji's favorite sweater. She hoped that she could magic it into growing with her body.

Sally-Anne had gone for the practical route and had given Aiji, and consequently her brother, an estate planner. It was a medium sized book that was connected to the Lord (or Lady) of lands and the heirs that allowed them to magically keep check of their estates. Luckily, there were ancient pureblood privacy laws predating the Ministry regarding those planners. It wouldn't do for the Fools In Charge to accidentally discover the existence of Toranin and by proxy Makai.

Every Slytherin (everyone keeps track of gift-trafficking of the Important People To Know) believed it was for the Potter estates and maybe – Draco fumed and raged at this – for the Black estates as it was rumored that Sirius Black was naming Aiji his heiress.

Lythiel and Sirius had gone the Quidditch venue. Lythiel had gotten Aiji a top-of-the-line, "grows with the player" Freidrichson arm, shin, and breast guards along with the _Diamondground_ bat. The enemy and "friendly" Chasers whimpered at the thought of that sociopath with high quality equipment instead of Bode's borrowed ones.

Sirius decided that though the _Nimbus 2000_ was great and its new version _Nimbus 2001_ was slightly better, he wanted better for his daredevil goddaughter who continuously sneaked away with Puu or a broom for aerobic stunts. He'd gone directly for the jugular. Somehow, someway, he got Aiji the working prototype of the _Firebolt_.

The _Firebolt_. As in, a high-tiered professional racing broom. One that technically should still be in the blueprint stages. That hasn't been technically tested yet.

Aiji had no problem whatsoever in being a test subject. The terrified Ravenclaws had been outflown, outmaneuvered, and overpowered by one flyer and one flyer only.

Even Snape had flinched when Aiji, having too much fun accelerating, had whisked by Seeker Cho Chang and accidentally, I josh you not, _accidentally_ caught the snitch.

Terrence Higgs was by now used to the almost humiliating way Urameshi trounced everyone without even trying. He did not feel one iota of envy for his successor.

The common room whispered of Draco Malfoy's ambition of having his father buy the team _Nimbus 2001_ (or even _Firebolts_) as encouragement to let him on the team.

Marcus Flint had no qualms with being bought off for the good of the team and personal riches.

Urameshi, however…. Terrence inwardly shuddered at the horrors the blond but still harmless git would suffer at Urameshi's training.

He couldn't wait to get started on that nice, _safe_ job at sales in the BMK. Maybe, if he was lucky, he could be immediately transferred to its headquarters in Germany.

(Yuusuke had not been left behind in the splurging, as Sirius had presented him with a brand new Kawasaki motorcycle that, like the _Firebolt_, should've still been on the blueprints stage.)

Aside from all of those minor details, Hogwarts was the same primordial cauldron of chaos as always. Only with a busier Poppy Pomfrey tending to the nosy students that didn't understand that when Aiji said "No, I don't want to discuss my private life with anyone" (party-line written by Sally-Anne), you don't keep pressing until she loses her patience.

Quirinus Quirell never once took his eyes off Aiji's smirking face. That was alright. Aiji kept one eye on him at all times. Hiei kept all three vigilant on the man and the back of his head, his katana ready to make a bald head roll.

~!#$&^)(_~!#$*&_+~!#%&(_)+~!#$&(

Remus liked to think himself a fair man. And fair men were not perfect; they made mistakes just like every regular Joe or Jane. It was when a fair man (or woman) made a mistake that their sense of justice was challenged and their response proved them worthy or unworthy of the title.

Remus didn't even think about these semantics the second he learnt the truth about Sirius. He'd tried to contact him while in England but so had every magical being and their cousin. It was only when he followed him to Japan and one Urameshi Atsuko's apartment that he got to have anything resembling a civil, one-on-one conversation with his old friend.

He looked… old. Malnourished and weak, but he was regaining weight, muscle and color little by little. But it was the haunted eyes that took the werewolf aback.

Even before his chosen exile from the Black family, Sirius had a way of letting cruelties and suffering roll off his back like water did to a duck. It was with a bullheadedness worthy of Godric that Sirius had remained a child trapped in an adult's body until a very, very dire situation forced him to show his real fangs.

Until now. Even Sirius had been no match for the horror that was Azkaban.

Remus, meanwhile, was more energized than ever. Though he held more grey hairs than a man his age had any business having, there was an inner fire driving Remus in every single movement. That spark had been lit the night he'd discovered Alyssa had been abandoned. Remus had thrown himself to the search, not pausing to worry about food or lodgings or even about the unfairness of being a relatively known werewolf. As such, his pride hadn't gotten in the way when Albus paid for any expenses. Who had the time to argue about that when every second wasted could mean that little Alyssa would forever be lost to them? Besides, technically, he was working for Dumbledore.

No that he had a foot at the door – literally, in Aiji's home – he found himself at a loss of words, with a free friend in front of him, Aiji's family, the girl in question finishing her first year at Hogwarts.

Sirius smirked, "What took you so long?"


End file.
